Eggcorn Forum

Discussions about eggcorns and related topics

You are not logged in.

Announcement

Registrations are currently closed because of a technical problem. Please send email to if you wish to register.

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

#1 2013-02-06 00:25:38

Dixon Wragg
Eggcornista
From: Cotati, California
Registered: 2008-07-04
Posts: 1375

"courtesy" for "curtsey"

“Curtsey” for “courtesy” (chiefly in “curtsey of” and “curtsey call”) is already on our eggcorn list, but today I was reading a “Wee Willie Winkie’s World” comic strip from 1906 and found this: “The wind begins to blow and the treelet sways gracefully, first to one side, then to the other, and courtesies to the old granny-trees in the background…”.

Googling “she courtesied” yielded around 400 unique hits. All of the ones I looked at were eggcorns. Typical examples:

She courtesied and quickly stepped out of the room.

“I am Mrs. Dillon,” said the silk mercer’s wife, as she courtesied.

She courtesied low to the Queen and awaited permission to speak.

In addition to the obvious meaning connection and similarity in pronunciation, this substitution is especially understandable given that the two words were synonymous as recently as the mid-16th century, with “curtsey” in the specific sense splitting off from “courtesy” later in that century. Since the first example I found was from a 1906 comic strip, I’m wondering if that usage was more common back then. Not sure how I’d go about finding out.

Offline

 

#2 2013-02-06 08:17:54

kem
Eggcornista
From: Victoria, BC
Registered: 2007-08-28
Posts: 2851

Re: "courtesy" for "curtsey"

The spelling “courtesy” for “curtsey” was common through most of the nineteenth century. You can see this on this Google N-gram of “courtesied” by clicking on the Victorian-era links at the bottom of the graph page. Your 1906 comic is following a well established tradition.


Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.

Offline

 

#3 2013-02-06 11:38:20

Dixon Wragg
Eggcornista
From: Cotati, California
Registered: 2008-07-04
Posts: 1375

Re: "courtesy" for "curtsey"

D’oh! I was trying to figure out how to use the N-gram to get that info, but it didn’t occur to me to use the -ed form of the word. Good call, kem! The N-gram is a fascinating thing.

Offline

 

#4 2013-02-12 22:07:17

Eoin
Member
Registered: 2006-04-11
Posts: 37

Re: "courtesy" for "curtsey"

“Courtesy while you’re thinking what to say. It saves time.”

Alice wondered a little at this, but she was too much in awe of the Queen to disbelieve it. “I’ll try it when I go home,” she thought to herself, “the next time I’m a little late for dinner.”
[Lewis Carroll, “Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There” (1871)]

Offline

 

Board footer

Powered by PunBB
PunBB is © 2002–2005 Rickard Andersson
Individual posters retain the copyright to their posts.

RSS feeds: active topicsall new posts