Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Chris -- 2025-05-10
A torus palatinus is an overgrowth on the roof of the mouth (palate), often torus-shaped. However, because some people are not familiar with the word “torus”, they think the word is “taurus” (constellation; astrological sign). In fact, I read one instance where the reader explained the etymology of “taurus palatinis” – it was so-named because the growth resembled a bull’s head with horns! (This example is currently unavailable for me to quote, but I’m told the database in which it exists should be back up by the end of this year).
A search of Google for “taurus palatinus” turns up many hits, though Google will try to correct you to “torus palatinus”.
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