misnomer's

Tommy · Post by **Tommy** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:14 pm

It is spring now, and the flowers are starting to bloom also bringing sleeping insects awake. They are not building me a house they are trying to eat it.

So why call them carpenter ants? What's your favorite misnomer's?

The Weekenders · Post by **The Weekenders** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:24 pm

Well, there's always the old English Horn. Neither a brass horn, nor English in origin.

And I still don't buy "rest" room. I couldn't think of a public place I want to get out of quicker. Nothin relaxin except the body parts, but even then, I am in a hurry. That's not resting.. But old polite euphemisms bein' what they are and all....

Coffee · Post by **Coffee** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:27 pm

Microsoft Works!
Modern Art
Decaf Coffee (Call it what you will, if there's no caffeine in it, it ain't coffee.)

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:27 pm

Yes, well there are also carpenter bees. That's what we have. They should be called Makita Drill Bees.

At the moment my problem is with an insurance company. I'm thinking they really ought to be billed as Screw you or at least give you an enormous headache policies.

aderyn_du · Post by **aderyn_du** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:35 pm

Guinea Pigs. If they're not from Guinea, and they're not a pig... then, why?

izzarina · Post by **izzarina** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:57 pm

Grape Nuts

chrisoff · Post by **chrisoff** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:06 pm

Cofaidh wrote:Microsoft Works!
Modern Art
Decaf Coffee (Call it what you will, if there's no caffeine in it, it ain't coffee.)

...are oxymorons rather than misnomers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxymoron
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misnomer

brianc · Post by **brianc** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 5:29 pm

Website.

jsluder · Post by **jsluder** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:23 pm

Driveways (where we park) and parkways (where we drive).

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 7:53 pm

Hermit crabs are highly social creatures.

Post by **Nanohedron** » Tue Mar 13, 2007 11:09 pm

When I was a kid, toilet water was all the rage with the girls. I thought that was very, very strange. And my toilet didn't smell like that at all.

djm · Post by **djm** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 5:34 am

Guinea pigs were kept in and around the house for a quick meal.

My favourite in this thread is the title. Its in the possesive.

djm

Innocent Bystander · Post by **Innocent Bystander** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 6:39 am

Customer Service.

Jennie · Post by **Jennie** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 9:38 am

aderyn_du wrote:Guinea Pigs. If they're not from Guinea, and they're not a pig... then, why?

They're from South America, right? Guyana and French Guyana. I have a Quechua friend from Peru who says they're a common food source. And some friends here in Alaska who raise them for food for their family.

Nome, in Alaska, was originally scrawled by a cartographer as Cape Name? and someone misread the handwriting.

Chicken, Alaska, is because ptarmigan was too hard to spell, I'm told.

Jennie

djm · Post by **djm** » Wed Mar 14, 2007 10:02 am

Wouldn't they be a bit ticked off now if some other town with a more literate legislative body decided to name their town Ptarmigan, Alaska?

djm