The Ants Are My Friends: Misheard Lyrics, Malapropisms, Eggcorns and Other Linguistic Gaffes

by Martin Toseland (Author)

• Used

  Hardcover
  2007

  $3.80

  Linguistic mistakes. We all make them. And if your name is George W Bush or Jade Goody, you might make them more often than others. In The Ants are My Friends (delightfully misheard from Bob Dylan's Blowing in the Wind ) Martin Toseland has collected the very best (and very worst) linguistic gifts of the gaffe. The catergories features include: Malapropisms (named after Mrs Malaprop in Sheridan's The Rivals where the wrong word pops out to bizarre results); Eggcorns (where a new word is created from misheard real one - the name comes from someone misunderstanding 'acorn' as 'eggcorn', as it has the same shape); Bushisms (the humour in which cannot be misunderestimated); and Mondegreens or misheard lyrics, which include such classic examples as: Who Ya Gonna Call, Gus Foster ( Ghostbusters by Ray Parker Junior); Last Night I Dreamed of Some Bagels ( La Isla Bonita by Madonna); Sparing His Life For His Mum's Sausages ( Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen); It's a Fruit, Fruit Samba ( Cruel Summer by Bananarama); and, Mr Tangerine Man ( Mr Tambourine Man by Bob Dylan). A literary Colemanballs, The Ants are My Friends has all the makings of a quirky Christmas hit - The Meaning of Tingo for 2007?