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Chris -- 2018-04-11

#1 2022-08-06 04:30:16

Peter Forster
Eggcornista
From: UK
Registered: 2006-09-06
Posts: 1224

'ride off' for 'write-off'

In business accounting, banking or insurance when an item’s usual or potential value has been lost this change must be recorded. At one time a clerk, standing at his desk, would have dipped a pen into ink and made note of this loss; it would be “written off”, a “write-off”.

Anyone unfamiliar with this procedure and particularly those who might pronounce ‘t’ as ‘d’ in some words could assume the term is “ride off” especially as the usual context is a vehicle damaged beyond repair.

We longer are not able to ride as it is a complete ride off. We are so sad. Would love to say to everyone at Gasoline Harley Davidson thank you for …

The scooter was a ride off and he didn’t need it anymore as he’s now in a wheelchair fulltime.

And along the journey, my car actually broke down and completely died, it was a ride off.

Hi guys!, this morning as I was driving a kangaroo jumped in front of my car at 100km and it’s a complete ride off!

Once you get to the Kheerganga, your exhaustion will be ridden off by the majesty of the natural landscape before you.

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#2 2022-08-06 05:54:51

DavidTuggy
Eggcornista
From: Mexico
Registered: 2007-10-11
Posts: 2715
Website

Re: 'ride off' for 'write-off'

Good ‘un. I especially like that kangaroo jumping at 100km(per hour, I suppose) and riding off on the car. I’m among those that pronounce “ride off” and “write off” (and “riding off” and “writing off”) virtually identically, with a flap “r” sound just like the Spanish “r”. But I distinguish “rides” from “writes”, “rode” from “wrote”, and “ridden” from “written” pretty clearly, so your exhaustion being ridden off into the sunset (by the king or queen of the landscape, no less) is an especially nice example. I found a few more with “ridden off” among the many legit examples (bikes ridden off curbs and people off the road, etc.), and a few of the others as well.

a ship loaded with goodies heading for England went down in the Mediterranean and it was ridden off as lost, before they even what it was they had.

the girl asks him if he wants “to smoke a joint,” but she immediately rides it off as a joke.

(This one seems a bit more clearly eggcornish to me than if he were the one to ride it off as a joke. These metaphorical writings off are in general more easily seen as taking the topic offstage or something like that.)
.
I also distinguish “rode” from “wrote” pretty clearly, and there are more examples of that:

Stretch Armstrong and, at the time, mostly everyone that followed movie news rode it off as a studio cash grab that would likely fail.

And to be completely honest, I kind of rode it off as them being sensitive. (I humbly apologize now for my ignorance.)

How they only did a 5 generational study in rats which is a short time period since they reproduce rapidly and they rode it off as okay.

If any of these people pronounce things like I do they probably meant “ride” rather than “write” when they rode these things down.

Last edited by DavidTuggy (2022-09-08 05:55:57)


*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .

(Possible Corollary: it is, and we are .)

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#3 2023-06-28 09:53:20

kem
Eggcornista
From: Victoria, BC
Registered: 2007-08-28
Posts: 2853

Re: 'ride off' for 'write-off'

Complete ride-off. Good. The well is not dry.


Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.

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