follow suite >> follow suit

[Arnold M. Zwicky]

On Oct 14, 2007, at 4:03 PM, James Harbeck wrote:

> Toronto Star, October 13, 2007, page L12, "Thinking outside the bowl"
> by David Rider: "In Canada, neither the federal nor provincial
> governments have followed suit."
>
> I've submitted this to the Eggcorn forum, although I supposed its
> eggcorn status is questionable, inasmuch as following suit doesn't
> make more sense than following suite, and it may be that "suit" is
> just a misspelling of "suite" (as in cards)

i see no evidence that "suit of cards" is not the standard spelling
(and pronunciation).  "follow suit" is surely the ordinary card-
playing-based idiom.  (google has millions vs. tens of thousands.)

> -- which, however, could
> make _it_ an eggcorn.
>
> I was surprised not to find it in the archives in the Eggcorn forum.
> I can't imagine this one is all that new.

this looks like a reverse eggcorn, in which original and reshaped
variant change places (at least in the mind of certain users).

arnold

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