Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Chris -- 2018-04-11
I have argued this one ad nauseam! The proper saying is “six of one, half a dozen OF the other” and is used to indicate that there is no difference between ostensible alternatives!
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Infuriating.
It’s possible this bothers me even more than the people who “could care-a-less” about a problem. “Care-a-less?” That’s not even the right way to say the wrong version of the phrase (“could care less”), which by my reckoning is even more popular that the correct “couldn’t care less.”
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33 hits for “half of one, six dozen of the other.” Probably safe to say that they’re ALL wordplay.
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Could an unintentional rearrangement actually be considered wordplay? I had always thought that wordplay was an intentionally clever rephrasing for the purpose of creating a more amusing (and often more meaningful) expression, no?
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I’m not sure whether you’re joking or not. Yes, wordplay is intentional. But I doubt the “half of one” variety is accidental.
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No, I wasn’t joking, I was seriously becoming a little unsure about my understanding of wordplay.
And I agree that the “half of one six dozen of the other” would almost have to be intentional (let’s hope!) as it takes the meaning of the original statement and spins it 180 degrees – i.e., the alternatives in the “half of one” expression clearly being very different alternatives which are in no way equivalent to one another. (Unless, of course, “other” takes a physical form that, compared to the physical form of “one,” is 1/144 the size or quantity – but not likely, as I feel fairly certain that this calculation was not relied upon in constructing the “half of one” expression…)
However, I think that the “six of one, a half dozen OR the other” is not wordplay. My thinking when I posted this was that “other” could conceivably be a third option which is equivalent to six and half a dozen – a wild card, if you will. Since the initial posting, I have interviewed a friend who uses the altered version of the expression regularly, and her thinking confirms my suspicion – she does seem to take the “other” to be a third equivalent.
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Techwreck writes:
Since the initial posting, I have interviewed a friend who uses the altered version of the expression regularly, and her thinking confirms my suspicion – she does seem to take the “other†to be a third equivalent.
That’s a real gem, and it validates the eggcorn usage too. (Firsthand accounts are the best).
What particularly amuses me is how it has a TV gameshow feel to it: It’s like having to pick between two concrete prizes on a gameshow …or gamble them both away for a third, unknown item! Such is the nature of our entertainment-based culture!
Last edited by jorkel (2007-05-12 13:21:06)
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