spoonerism \SPOO-nuh-riz-uhm\, noun:
The transposition of usually initial sounds in a pair of words. 
Some examples:
- We all know what it is to have a half-warmed fish ["half-formed wish"] inside us. 
- The Lord is a shoving leopard ["loving shepherd"]. 
- It is kisstomary to cuss ["customary to kiss"] the bride. 
- Is the bean dizzy ["dean busy"]? 
- When the boys come back from France, we'll have the hags flung out ["flags hung out"]! 
- Let me sew you to your sheet ["show you to your seat"]. 
Spoonerism comes from the name of the Rev. William Archibald Spooner (1844-1930), a kindly but nervous Anglican clergyman and educationalist. All the above examples were committed by (or attributed to) him.
13 April 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
 

 
No comments:
Post a Comment