PITH-ee
Her pithy reply summed up the entire argument in one sentence.
Fun Fact
“Pith” refers to the essence or core of something, and a pithy comment gets right to that core. Famous pithy speakers include Winston Churchill and Oscar Wilde, known for delivering wit and wisdom in just a few well-chosen words. The best slogans and comebacks? Almost always pithy.
mal-uh-PROP-iz-um
(noun) The mistaken use of a word in place of a similar-sounding one, often unintentionally humorous.
His toast included a memorable malapropism when he thanked the “distinguished constipation” instead of constellation of guests.
From Mrs. Malaprop, a character in Sheridan’s The Rivals (1775), whose name comes from French mal à propos (“inappropriate”).
Fun Fact
Classic malapropisms crop up everywhere—from sitcoms to political speeches—because our brains latch onto sound-alike words under pressure. Linguists note that malapropisms often keep the same grammatical role (a noun replacing a noun), which is why they can slip past us until context exposes the mismatch. Mrs. Malaprop herself gave us gems like “illiterate him quite from your memory,” and modern pop culture keeps the tradition alive for quick, character-revealing humor. They’re funny not because of nonsense, but because they’re almost right.
Today's Word Malapropism mal-uh-PROP-iz-um Definition (noun) The mistaken use of...
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