The Joy of Aural Spellings

I’ve seen two lovely examples of aural spellings this morning.* The first comes from my cousin Adele in St Croix, who saw a sign that reads

Not for the fainted heart

‘Home of the Famous XXX Margarita — only $1.50 — WARNING: NOT FOR THE FAINTED HEART.’**

The second came from someone’s FB comment thread, wherein a comment on the US President’s legal affairs referred to ‘torte reform’ — a slip that turns out to be pretty common (both deliberately and inadvertently), but which is so sweet I had to record it here. Plus, Margaret is on her way home from Chester and I’m about to order a smoothie and slog through some translating — so this infinitesimal slice of the world is pretty good at the moment.


* There may indeed be other explanations for these misprisions, but the point is the effect, not the ætiology.

** Evidently if you crave margaritas, especially the XXX variety, St Croix is the place to be.

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