eggcorn: "profound" (profane) words

[Jonathan Lighter]

Not all that long ago:

  "Date:         Sun, 8 Apr 2007 16:03:43 -0700
Reply-To:     American Dialect Society <[log in to unmask]>
Sender:       American Dialect Society Mailing List <[log in to unmask]>
From:         Jonathan Lighter <[log in to unmask]>
Subject:      Re: accusative cursing
Comments: To: [log in to unmask]
In-Reply-To:  <[log in to unmask]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1


"...In the '50s, "ass" (not the equine) was a "curse-word."  As a group, the New Yorkers I knew divided usage between "curse" and "cuss." (The phonemic difference was usually clear, BTW.)  "Profanity" and "profane" were similarly applied.

  A comic recollection.  In junior high I had a copy of Churchill's _The Gathering Storm_.  I mentioned,  to my friend, not altogether innoocently,"There's a chapter called 'The Rape of Czechoslovakia.'"

  "Ever the provocateur, he ran yelling to my grandmother, "Jon is using profound language !"
  Sic.

 " A simpler time.

 " JL"

JL

"Arnold M. Zwicky" <zwicky at CSLI.STANFORD.EDU> wrote:
  ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender: American Dialect Society
Poster: "Arnold M. Zwicky"
Subject: Re: eggcorn: "profound" (profane) words
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Jul 31, 2007, at 12:21 PM, Jon Lighter wrote:

> Jerry, some time ago

since 1999?

> I posted my own experience with this error some 45 years ago.

under what header?

arnold

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org



---------------------------------
Yahoo! oneSearch: Finally,  mobile search that gives answers, not web links.

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org