As we learn new phrases we do not really look into if we are saying it right or wrong and we just keep saying them repeatedly without ever finding out.
Apart from that, there are a lot of phrases that have become very common and they are all wrong. You can read that in the odyssey online as well.
In this article, we will get to know about some of the phrases that we have been misquoting all our lives without even realizing that we are saying it all wrong.
Another Thing Coming:
As right as it might sound, it is actually very wrong, and we have not even realized it from when we started saying it.
It has become very common that people would, really judge you if you say it the other way around. Well, just to inform you the phrase is actually another think coming and not another thing coming.
No, do not give us weird stares because it is just a fact. It actually means that whatever you are thinking might just be wrong and you need to think of something else.
Baited Breath:
The next phrase that you have been saying all the time is wrong is what we have just mentioned above. This might be looking normal to you, but it is just so wrong that we cannot emphasize enough on it.
The actual word is the bated breath and no it is not your fault if you did not find out because this word is not even used anywhere else.
The word bated is derived from abated breath which actually means restricted breathing. So, correct yourselves before somebody else comes to correct you and just thank us later.
On Tender Hooks:
Well, just when we thought the wrong phrases cannot go any farther we came to know about the tender hooks, but in reality, it is just on tenterhooks.
It is not anyone’s fault because this world is not normally found anywhere else and that is why people ought to mispronounce it this way.
Tenter is actually a word that is used for wooden frames and these wooden frames are used to dry clothes. Tenterhooks basically means under pressure.
This is the term that is very commonly used for someone or the feeling of anxiousness or stress.
First Come, First Serve:
No, it is not your fault if you also think that this one is the right phrase because it has actually become that common.
This phrase means that the people who will come first will serve others who will come late whereas the original meaning is the exact opposite.
The right phrase is first come, first served, which means whoever will come first will be served first.
I Could Care Less:
Well no, you could not care less is the right phrase, and not you could care less.
The actual meaning of I could not care less is that the person does not really care at all whereas the phrase I could care less means that the person cares to some extent and no that is not the right phrase to be said.
Slight of Hand:
Just like all the other phrases this one called the slight of hand is also wrong because it basically is not slight of hand but sleight of hand.
Sleight again is not a very common word that is why it is misspelled. Sleight basically means cunning and it is used by the conjurers to trick people.
So, it is not slight but sleight.
To All Intensive Purposes:
Well, we would just have to say it again, but this phrase is also wrong because it is not to all intensive purposes but to all intent and purposes.
The first phrase or the wrong phrase means to all the important purposes which in one sense is right, but the actual correct phrase is to all intents and purposes.
The right phrase means that in all the important and the practical ways. This is the phrase that is used to mention the practical purpose of two different things.
So yes, start using the right phrase and tell others about it too.
Peaked My Interest:
The last phrase that needs to be mentioned here is the one that is most commonly used without people knowing that they are just using it wrong.
The right word is not peaked but piqued and these two clearly have two opposite meanings and that is why it matters more.
The piqued my interest means that the interest of the person has gone to its highest peak after listening to you whereas piqued means that their interest is going on the slope slowly.
Now you pretty much know all the phrases that you have been using wrong and what are their correct versions.