Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Chris -- 2018-04-11
I’m surprised this reading of “winner take all” isn’t in the database, much less in the forum. I always heard the phrase that way, and it drove me nuts. Literally “win or take all” implies a “heads I win, tails you lose” situation—isn’t “taking all” the same thing as winning? But maybe the less-literal minded think it means something like “either you win, or you lose everything.” Win or (someone else will) take all. Maybe it’s too illogical to be an actual eggcorn, but there are plenty of technically illogical phrases in the English language, like “I could care less.”
Examples from the Internet:
So it goes to a win or take all game 7.
My test says STATES do not have a win or take all system in electoral college?
I feel that it is unjust to have our system work this way especially with the win or take all system.
Win or take all and DMFW took it all. Well lets be more honest to the fact that the Dark Knights had no answer for intern Chet…. Chet = 5 TDs and a Frizzy’s victory. DMFW talks the talk but Chet walks the walk. DMFW buy your man a drink or 5.
(I can’t tell if the last person thinks “taking all” means winning or losing).
Last edited by wkdewey (2015-09-11 11:37:49)
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I’m also surprised that we’ve overlooked this one for ten years, especially since we have cast our eyes over “winter take all.” SNOT award worthy.
A reanalysis eggcorn, with “winner” become “win or.”
Possibly the perps understand the eggcorn as a simple redundancy. “It’s a win (or take all) situation.”
Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.
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Top notch.
*If the human mind were simple enough for us to understand,
we would be too simple-minded to understand it* .
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