Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Thanks for your understanding.
Chris -- 2018-04-11
“Toying†and “toiling†seem to be somewhat opposed to each other – “toying†implies a certain insouciance, while “toiling†evokes honest labor. Still, I think this works – toying with an idea can involve real effort if the idea is big enough. 1170 rgh/98 ugh. Examples:
We’ve been toiling with the idea for months to get a new dog as company for our old dog (Rocky).
http://en.allexperts.com/q/Canine-Behav … et-New.htm
Recently I’ve been toiling with the idea of moving asian man out of the garage and into a real
office.
http://www.asianmanrecords.com/newsletter.php?id=43
For some time, a small band of eccentric programmers here have been toiling with the idea of creating our own game.
http://www.nongnu.org/bontz/
Then, in 1940, Avery directed A Wild Hare. Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Subject, this cartoon was notable for two reasons: It solidified the transformation of Egghead into Elmer Fudd, a transformation that had begun with Avery’s 1938 cartoon A Feud There Was. This cartoon also was the first real Bugs Bunny cartoon. Warner’s had begun toiling with the idea of a screwball rabbit in 1938’s Porky’s Hare Hunt, a cartoon that was a variation on Avery’s own aforementioned cartoon, Porky’s Duck Hunt. A few subsequent cartoons further developed the rabbit’s personality, but it wasn’t until A Wild Hare that the appearance and personality of the Bugs Bunny we all know and love came into being.
http://lavender.fortunecity.com/fullmonty/22/avery.htm
[I found the passage interesting in its own right, so I copied a lot of it and bold-faced the eggcorn-relevant bit.]
Last edited by patschwieterman (2009-03-25 12:40:36)
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It certainly has a subliminal aspect to it, and it would seem that those who want to imply that serious effort was exerted would consciously avoid “toy” and opt for “toil.” So, some of those cases may be intentional, but there are probably plenty of others which are naively uttered as eggcorns.
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