Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Chris -- 2025-05-10
Perhaps, it’s a simple typo…
“Since the Michigan voters’ intent in passing the amendment was to stop gay unions from ever being recognized as marriages and to deny them the same protections and benefits as married couples, this decision was a no-briner for them…”
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I’m guessing that “no-briner” means that they didn’t shed any tears—“brine” being a reference to the salt in tears. (Or perhaps you could explain the imagery a bit more if I got that wrong). I can’t decide whether this usage—in place of “no-brainer”—is intentional or unintentional. If it’s the latter, then you’ve got yourself a genuine eggcorn.
I’m thinking it’s mostly an intentional, catchy construction. It’s plausible that a select few might have used it unknowingly, but I think it might be hard to prove that. Even so, it might be worth hunting further to find a genuine example. But again, I think it’s going to be really hard to prove it just from contextual clues. Good luck.
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I’m thinking the author was reiterating what s/he heard an Aussie pronounce, roit, mate?
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