Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
You are not logged in.
The Eggcorn Forum and the Eggcorn Database are currently in the process of being converted into static sites.
Once the conversion is complete, all existing posts are expected to still be accessible at their original URLs. However, no new posts will be possible.
Feel free to comment on the relevant forum threads.
Chris -- 2025-05-10
I came across this in a technical webpage: “As a rule of thump you can assume that no specification works from the first time.” [1], but there appear to be thousands of examples on the web.
Offline
I thought sure we’d already discussed this one, but don’t find it. I’ve heard the explanation that the “rule of thump†has to do with thumping watermelons to determine if they’re ripe or not, which makes reasonable (eggcornish) sense to me. The resulting phrase denotes a process that is good to follow in deciding what to do (whether to take this watermelon or another) but is not foolproof, which is a good semantic match with the overall meaning of “rule of thumbâ€.
Last edited by DavidTuggy (2010-04-07 14:43:42)
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
Offline
Discussed here: http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/forum/view … hp?id=3336
Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.
Offline
Just noticed that Will’s case looks like a blend as well, of “as a rule†with “(by) rule of thumb/pâ€.
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
Offline