pedalling those myths

[sagehen]

>On Jun 25, 2006, at 6:14 PM, Laurence Horn wrote:
>
>> an eggcorn of possible interest:
>>
>> This is from a posting on a linguistics-related list (not ours, of
>> course).  The poster, discussing a speech by an uninformed British
>> prescriptivist who rejects the systematicity of non-standard
>> varieties of English, objects to the necessity of "having to endure
>> the pedalling of such dangerous myths by such an influential figure".
>> I've earlier come across "soft-petalling" conclusions, so I guess
>> it's only fair that "pedal" gets its eggcornish revenge elsewhere.
>
>the database has soft-pedal >> soft-peddle (file 455) and backpedal
> >> backpeddle (175), but not (apparently) the reverse.  "peddle" and
>"pedal" are easy spelling confounds, and that might be all that's
>going on here.  i wonder what image the poster had in mind.
>
>arnold
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

>"peddle" and
>"pedal" are easy spelling confounds, ............

.........probably further confused  by "pedlar."
AM

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