(no subject)

[labellementeuse]

Something that baffles and has kind of bugged me in fic: perfectly spelled words that are nevertheless not quite the word the author was going for. You know, things like "she would caught danger" or "he was unphased."

And I just realised tonight why this bugs and bemuses me in equal measure: the people using these words are using words they've learned from conversation. From actual speaking! This is AMAZING. I really mean that. I don't think I've ever heard a word in conversation that I hadn't already read. (I mean, obviously in the pre-reading days, but I don't remember them.) In fact I always had the reverse problem - I'd say a word and get a lot of laughs from the family (in fact, one of my parents' faaaavourite embarassing childhood memories was when I'd been reading a lot of Adrian Mole, and I asked them "am I mature for my age?" Only I said it MAcha, to rhyme with nature, you know? Which, by the way, makes PERFECT sense, seeing as how mature and nature are ONE letter apart. ONE. COME ON. English sucks.)

Anyway, my point is: I will be less annoyed by this in future, because I mispronounce words ALL the time and it would just be some hideous hypocrisy.

Comments

[ellipsisblack.livejournal.com]

This is called a malapropism (I think? Using a close but nonetheless incorrect word = malapropism). ;) They are fun, but certainly reveal people who a) have not much book larnin' and b) who don't really think about what makes sense. Heh.

This is the sort of thing any beta worth their salt would catch and gently correct. --;

Anyway, I go both ways. I remember I thought Armageddon was pronounced ar-MA*-je-don (*MA as in MAT) because I saw it first in print, and damnit, according to the rules of spelling, the single g and double d means it should by rights be pronounced like that. *tearful* Then, other words I'd hear first and then later read and go, "aaaaaaaaah that's that word!"

I have the kinds of parents who use big, pretentious words in everyday speech (hi Dad, looking at you), though, so I got as much of my vocab from them as from books, I guess?

[labellementeuse.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it is, although for some reason I feel like a malapropism is more self-aware, if you know what I mean. Malapropisms generally occur in conversation, where a wrong word is phonetically distinguishable. Whereas in this case, the writer has set out to write a word, has picked the word they wanted to write, and they've written it correctly. To all intents and purposes it's the right word, it's just not the right word. Someone who's only ever heard "I was fazed", and has never read it, can't possibly be expected to make it up correctly - why not use phased? Caught/court - courting danger is a metaphor, after all. Why not catch danger? Like a cold.

But yeah, malapropisms, blah de blah. (And sometimes they're just HIDEOUS - for example, I cannot DEAL with the misuse of discreet and discrete. CAN. NOT. Which is ridiculous because it could just be a typo! But still.) Anyway, my point was that I feel kind of uncomfortable blaming it on being uneducated (... which is kind of tacky anyway?) or thoughtless, since it's possible to think really hard about it and still be wrong. And also, they'd be perfectly justified in turning around and pointing out that I speak poorly.

My parents use big words about as much as is typical but my problem is really that I was (and still am) a VORACIOUS reader and spent significantly more time reading than talking (which... hmm, still do. I like it better that way.) It would be hard for me to hear a word before I read it (especially since written vocabularies are so much more flexible than spoken ones). So my spelling is fantastic and my pronunciation... sketchy! I try not to let it bother me but it's hard when my parents keep telling that anecdote :P

[disturbed-kiwi.livejournal.com]

fazed is one I pick up a lot but my absolute number one favourite in all the written mediums I partake off is...

Drum roll...

'Siked'
Meaning, of course, Psyched as in psyched out or I'm psyched. Because its about psychology. I want to pronounce what they end up writing down as 'sickt'. At least. I reckon it should be Psyched. Hmmm.

[disturbed-kiwi.livejournal.com]

Hee, an Off OF slipped in there :)