hypercorrection

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“
President Obama, whose attention to language is obvious in his speeches and writings, smiled at the chief justice's hypercorrection, then gamely repeated it.

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Definitions (2)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. noun A construction or pronunciation produced by mistaken analogy with standard usage out of a desire to be correct, as in the substitution of I for me in on behalf of my parents and I.
  2. noun The production of such a construction or pronunciation.

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Examples (15)

  • President Obama, whose attention to language is obvious in his speeches and writings, smiled at the chief justice's hypercorrection, then gamely repeated it. —  Nouslife
  • This Bache attributes to hypercorrection, triggered by corrections of PST —  Language Log
  • The classic example of hypercorrection is the use of "you and I" when "you and me" would actually be correct. —  Interesting Thing of the Day
  • One of my favorite examples of hypercorrection is the name of a dish consisting of cheese sauce over a slice of toast. —  Interesting Thing of the Day
  • There is no easy cure for hypercorrection. —  Interesting Thing of the Day
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