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
Has anyone heard that the phrase “pretty please” derived from “pray thee, please”? I’m struggling with finding this on the internet, so all I can do is toss it out to the forum. Some one? Anyone?
Offline
I could buy that, but where does the “sugar on top” come from?
Offline
I think “pray thee” became “prithy” as was common in Elizabethan & Colonial Times: “I prithy, please bring me a turkey sandwich”. Since this language is now archaic, the word “prithy” has morphed into something that sounds more modern (but nonsensical): “pretty please”. A perfect eggcorn, I’d say.
Dave Pevear
Offline
I believe “pretty” may mean “pretty” here. Germans say “bitte schoen” (spelling??). That means, “pretty please.” And, when Greeks want to say, “please,” they say, “para kalo,” which means, “for pretty.”
Pretty interesting! What did Proto Indo Europeans say?
Last edited by Tom Neely (2006-09-14 12:03:57)
Offline
Another consideration:
Pretty Please well may be an old eggcorn from Prithee Please, as discussed above. If so, it is an interesting type, because we never say, “Prithee” anymore. The word Prithee no longer exists, so that the eggcorn Pretty has taken over completely.
What do we call this type of eggcorn? A Fried Eggcorn maybe? Or, how about an Eggcorn Cob?
Offline