"thing/think" [was: on the eggcorn beat]

[David Bowie]

From:    James Smith <jsmithjamessmith at YAHOO.COM>

> I've always used "thing", and that's what I've always understood
> others to be saying.  I recently read "To Kill a Mockingbird"; one of
> the characters says "another think coming", which I had to reread to
> make sure I read it correctly.

I had the same experience with TKAM back when i read for a HS English
class (age 16, maybe 15), but i'd read "another think coming" before
that a few places. Back then i read it as a hypercorrection (before i
had the term hypercorrection to use as a label). Even now, though,
"another thing coming" is so completely and utterly natural for me that
even though i know that "think" is the historically valid choice, it
still rings wrong and hypercorrected to me.

--
David Bowie                               University of Central Florida
     Jeanne's Two Laws of Chocolate: If there is no chocolate in the
     house, there is too little; some must be purchased. If there is
     chocolate in the house, there is too much; it must be consumed.

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