Discussions about eggcorns and related topics
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Chris -- 2018-04-11
Killing a thirst, or slaying it, seems a nicely eggcornish substitution for the comparatively obscure slake.
So I drank immense quantities of water to slay my thirst and here I am keeping watch by the glowscreen of the almighty Imac. ...
Goodness..so far this track is slaying my thirst for infectious pop music. about 21 hours ago from web. Picture_2_bigger. cjaymes. Cameron Jaymes. Footer …
twitter.com/cjaymes/status/1063242695
... everyone who walked by …..water slaying my thirst as i swigged it down …...skin glistening and eyes bright again i felt alive but in slow motion . ..
‘Slate’ on the other hand is less obviously eggcornucopial, with only its cooling properties in pre-refrigerator days, and drinking references like “on the slate” to recommend it:
It is the type of place where the local Starbucks places water bowls on their patio so dogs can slate their thirst while their owners chit-chat. ...
www.pps.org/great_public_spaces/one?public_place_id=766 – 31k – Cached
Diners can go light with salads and sandwiches, or slate their thirst with draft beers. Lunch deals for a salad, soda and a slice make a nice entry to the …
www.montereycountyweekly.com/restaurant … 11/@@index – 13k – Cached
Not only did it sate my hunger and slate my thirst, but it made me feel. Made me warm inside when usually I was cold. Deathly cold. ...
www.fictionpress.com/s/1508313/1/Nadria –
9 Nov 2006 … He ends up tearing their throats out and drinking their blood, however, this does not slate his thirst; it only acts as a catalysis that …
lilith999.tribe.net/thread/a5f390eb-9957-4b75-8b3f-ba8cd73502b9 – 35k – Cached
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Don’t want to let this one go by without notice. As I say in another post, it’s one the best ones I’ve seen this year.
Hatching new language, one eggcorn at a time.
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Completely in agreement. Slay one’s thirst is one of a recent crop “of all beauty” as they say in Quebec.
Note for slate your thirst, that Charles Mackay’s The Gaelic etymology of the languages of western Europe, which is available here (link) , points out that to slate is a slang word for “to beat, to lick, to pelt with abuse” and comes from the Gaelic word slat for a wand, stick or rod. Is there a connection to slate of hand?
Last edited by burred (2009-05-16 16:17:40)
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What I like in particular about “slay your thirst” is that it seems to inhabit the same arch, poetic register as the original. That’s a pretty neat trick.
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