Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
You are not logged in.
Registrations are currently closed because of a technical problem. Please send email to
The forum administrator reserves the right to request users to plausibly demonstrate that they are real people with an interest in the topic of eggcorns. Otherwise they may be removed with no further justification. Likewise, accounts that have not been used for posting may be removed.
Thanks for your understanding.
Chris -- 2018-04-11
The tryst that lovers share grew out of an O.Fr. word, tristre, for a station or post during a hunt—a venereal assignation. An interesting further connection is made in Bailey, an etymological dictionary from 1724, where on page 890 is noted that trista, in “Old Law”, was also “an Immunity whereby a Man was freed from his Attendance on the Lord of the Forest when he went a Hunting”. Palmer says that a folk etymology annointed the name Trystan, as Sir Tristrem, as “patron of the chase” because of this connection.
A lover’s twist evokes entwined bodies, or a bending of the rules, perhaps choreographed by Chubby Checker.
Film fantasy
A lover’s twist with Sabertooth in a steamy Cyclops hostage scene would be hot as well.
Tiger Woods
You, dear listener, as much as it pains me to say it, are also extremely unlikely to be involved in a romantic twist with the world’s most athletic billionaire.
Snippet from Was Dumbledore gay
Second, If he wasn’t gay, he would have probably had a romantic twist with Professor Magonnigal.
Offline
Could also be a brief encounter (twist as in “twist of lemon”).
Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.
Offline
In the reverse direction, there’s ‘tryst of fate.’ It’s mostly used deliberately, in Harlequin-grade romantic fiction, but occasionally not-
In a bizarre tryst of fate, Queerninja has wrested the Katana from ‘The Listeners’ and brings you a MASSIVE selection of deadly tunes.
dopecast.libsyn.com/2007/02
The book taps into Scrooge’s inner demons and portrays how a man has been hardened by the tryst of fate.
matadorgoods.com/4-classic-christmas-reads/
...We thought we’d rescued a beautiful stray from the streets, but a tryst of fate taught us how to truly love our cat m sickness and m health
newspapers.nl.sg/Digitised/Issue/straitstimes20031122.aspx
Offline
Had Juliet cried, “Womeo, Womeo…” then she’d certainly be up for a twist rather than a tryst. But seriously, the mild speech impediment whereby one can’t sound one’s Rs is widespread – far more common than the lisp I think – and many people must pick up new words from such folk. (And how come we have the word “lisp” for th/s substitutions, but no such common term for w/r ones?)
Offline