"sell oneself short" = "miss out on an experience"

Herb Stahlke hfwstahlke at GMAIL.COM
Mon Mar 4 05:00:52 UTC 2013


Since it was on a commercial with high production values, I guess I would
have expected an editor to catch a malapropism.  But, to quote Wilson,
youneverknow.

Herb


On Sun, Mar 3, 2013 at 8:58 AM, Douglas G. Wilson <douglas at nb.net> wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Douglas G. Wilson" <douglas at NB.NET>
> Subject:      Re: "sell oneself short" = "miss out on an experience"
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> On 3/2/2013 10:50 PM, Herb Stahlke wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
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> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       Herb Stahlke <hfwstahlke at GMAIL.COM>
> > Subject:      "sell oneself short" = "miss out on an experience"
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > In a new Sam Adams ad, the speaker is drinking his first Sam Adams and,
> > enjoying it and wondering why he hasn't tried it before, he says, "I've
> > been selling myself short."
> --
>
> Assuming that it is an error for "shortchange oneself", does it qualify
> as a malapropism?
>
> -- Doug Wilson
>
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