mondegreen

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“
The technical term is mondegreen-originating in 1954 when American writer Sylvia Wright published an essay in Harper's Magazine on her own lyrical disillusionment.

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Definitions (1)

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  1. noun A series of words that result from the mishearing or misinterpretation of a statement or song lyric. For example, I led the pigeons to the flag for I pledge allegiance to the flag.

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Examples (13)

  • About half of what i hear turns into a mondegreen. —  Mandolin Cafe News
  • I suppose an eggcorn is one word, and more than one word is a mondegreen? —  MetaFilter
  • The technical term is mondegreen-originating in 1954 when American writer Sylvia Wright published an essay in Harper's Magazine on her own lyrical disillusionment. —  Queen's Journal: Latest stories
  • The mondegreen experience is apparently a common one. —  Queen's Journal: Latest stories
  • According to writer and mondegreen expert Gavin Edwards, pop songs, or even national anthems, are not always meant to be fully understood, saying we're meant to let them wash over us and pick out individual choruses we enjoy. —  Queen's Journal: Latest stories
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Etymologies (1)

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  1. After (Lady) Mondegreen, a misinterpretation of the line (hae laid) him on the green, from the song "The Bonny Earl of Murray”.
 

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