crumble/crumple

[Dan Goncharoff]

Isn't this just spell-check-itis?
DanG


On Mon, Dec 19, 2011 at 1:25 PM, Victor Steinbok <aardvark66 at gmail.com>wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Victor Steinbok <aardvark66 at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      crumble/crumple
>
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>
> Grammar girl posted on Google+:
>
> > I was reminded today of how I crumbled into a sobbing heap when Frosty
> > melted in "Frosty the Snowman."
>
> My first thought was "crumbled? really?" Google bears this out:
>
> 300K+ raw for "crumpled into a heap"; 50K+ for "crumbled into a heap";
> 346K for "collapsed into a heap"
>
> "Crumble" does not mean "collapse"--in means "break down into small
> pieces".
>
> Eggcorn? Or just a less favored variant? My inclination is the former,
> as it seems to be a reinterpretation.
>
>     VS-)
>
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