Eggcorn

An eggcorn is a mishearing or misspelling of a word or phrase that substitutes something that sounds the same and makes its own kind of sense, such as 'egg corn' for acorn.

Someone writes "egg corn" for "acorn". It is wrong, but it is not random. An acorn is egg-shaped, and it is a seed, like corn. The mistake has its own reasoning. Linguists call this an eggcorn.

Examples

• "Old-timer's disease" for Alzheimer's disease.
• "Free reign" for free rein.
• "Damp squid" for damp squib.
• "Escape goat" for scapegoat.
• "Nip it in the butt" for nip it in the bud.
• "Case and point" for case in point.

Each swap yields a phrase that nearly means something. That is what sets the eggcorn apart from a plain slip.

Why they happen

People learn many phrases by ear. When a word is old or rare, such as "rein" in "free rein" or "squib", the brain replaces it with a familiar word that fits. Over time, some eggcorns spread widely enough to be listed in dictionaries.

Why it matters to a writer or editor

An eggcorn is one of the errors spellcheck will not catch, because every word is real. Editors learn a list of the usual suspects and check them on every pass. When you find one, fix it quietly. In fiction, a character who uses eggcorns is a character who learns from hearing and not from reading, which is a quick way to show background. Close relatives are the malapropism and the mondegreen, and the process is how any new neologism can get started.

Frequently asked questions

Where does the word eggcorn come from?

Linguist Geoffrey Pullum proposed it in 2003, after a reader wrote in using 'egg corn' for acorn. It makes a kind of sense, since an acorn is shaped like an egg and is a seed like corn.

What are some common eggcorns?

'Old-timer's disease' for Alzheimer's disease, 'damp squid' for damp squib, 'free reign' for free rein and 'escape goat' for scapegoat.

How is an eggcorn different from a malapropism?

A malapropism is a wrong word that makes no sense in context. An eggcorn replaces a word with another that gives the phrase a plausible new logic.