Spoonerisms A play On Words Or In My Case Family Bloopers!

Spoonerism or a play on words, is a classic example of 'How to get your words muddled up'. It is also known as an error of speech.

The word spoonerism, was started by the Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844-1930) who was a Warden of New College Oxford England. He was well known for getting his words in a complete muddle. For example:

1. 'a well boiled icicle, in other words, a well oiled bycicle!
2. Is it kistomary to cuss the bride?! - customary to kiss the bride
3. The Lord is a shoving leopard - A loving Shepherd!
4. Is the bean dizzy? - Is the Dean busy?

This in polite terms is said to be called, 'getting one's words in a tangle.

Spooner was also well known for many different sayings that are common today. I am sure we have all heard the phrase, 'I would rather have a bottle in front of me, than a frontal lobotomy'! There are various forms of spoonerisms as this shows. Now we know this, I am going to introduce you to my mother!

She was one of the most spooneristic people I know. Every time she opened her mouth, the words would get tangled up. And my dad wasn't much better either. The trouble is it seems to be catching. My friend has started to do the same thing. Only the other day he said, 'I would love to go to Egpyt! He meant Egypt! So is it only an English thing? Or do you know someone who always gets their words, or phrases muddled up? Maybe you suffer with Spoonerism. I know it certainly runs in my family..

My mother was one of those people who couldn't bear to miss out on anything. She either had the radio going full blast most of the time, or she was often found peering out the window at three in the morning. Mind you that was my fault. She always insisted on staying up to make sure I got home safely from the nightclub. I was eighteen at the time, but you know what mums are like. Here are just a few of her sayings, bloopers, tongue ties or spoonerisms.

1. On referring to a friend coming to tea:

I had better go fetch her, she will be tired, she has just come back from the Incontinent!

(Subcontinent!)

2. Entering a shop behind a very haughty posh woman who asked for Jam Donuts:

Excuse me Sir, (posh voice) Please can I have so of those lovely Damn Jonuts!

3. Listening to the radio one day she came running into the front room and said:

The Pope has just ordered 400 new cars! How can he afford that?

What she meant was, The Pope has ordained 400 new Cardinals!

4. On buying a new cat with the name of Joe, she could never remember his name. (nor mine!) So chasing the cat down the garden she yelled:

Jason, Joson, Bason Bison, oh darn it!

5. Following a woman into a shop, she heard (yeah right!) the woman say:

Thank you for your help, I would now like to pay: The man carried on packing her goods.

And my my mum who was hard of hearing, (who woulda thought it?) said at the top of her voice, 'Scuse me, the lady would like to pee, can't you show her the toilets?!

6. My brother asked her to go and fetch a record that was in the charts at the time.

It was called Tiger Feet by the group Mud. On entering the record store, right in the middle of a group of teenagers she said at the top of her voice:

Hey, have you got that new record, Muddy Feet by Tiger? (shame!) my brother never lived that one down!

7. But sadly he fell for it again. A few months later, she said, I am going down town, do you want anything?

So, my brother said, yes can you go to the record store and get me, Elvis Presleys record called, Burning Love!

So, off she went and asked for: Flaming Lust by Elvis Parsley! Nooooo!

My mother was one of the funniest people I have ever known. She used to tell me these bloopers when she came back from the shops. It was the funniest thing to hear, as she always would laugh so loud and keep saying 'Oh dear, Oh dear, I didn't say that did I? Then fall back on the couch holding her head in her hands crying with laughter. I am sure that she did it deliberatly most of the time. Or perhaps not!

So, do you know of anybody that suffers with Spoonerism? Most of my family does that's for sure!

Copyright Nell Rose

All Rights reserved.