Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

malaphor

/ˈmæl.ə.foɹ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 0.00 in modern English

Syllables: malaphor
IPA: /ˈmæl.ə.foɹ/

15

Scrabble Score

8

Letters

1

Syllables

7

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An idiom blend: an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result.

Example Sentences

"What I conclude from this admittedly narrow data base is that, while the malaphor flourishes in bureaucratic compost, it will grow just about anywhere. The following malaphors are my pick of the letters. They were uttered in the home, on the farm, in the street."
"Among Swift's favorite malaphors are "He's a ragged individualist"; "I was up at the crank of dawn"; and "He's a fly in the oatmeal.""

Etymology

Blend of malapropism + metaphor; attributed to Lawrence Harrison in the Washington Post article "Searching for Malaphors" (Aug. 6, 1976).

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈmæl.ə.foɹ/
British English: /ˈmæ.lə.fə/

Inflected Forms

malaphors (plural)

Frequently Paired Words

antiproverb mixed metaphor

Synonyms

Dundrearyism

Questions

How do you pronounce malaphor?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈmæl.ə.foɹ/.
What does malaphor mean?: An idiom blend: an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result.
Where does malaphor come from?: Blend of malapropism + metaphor; attributed to Lawrence Harrison in the Washington Post article "Searching for Malaphors" (Aug. 6, 1976).

How to pronounce malaphor

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “malaphor”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈmæl.ə.foɹ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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