Malapropism

Pronunciation

• RP IPA: /ˈmælÉ™prÉ’pɪzÉ™m/
• US enPR: mălʹə-prä-pÄ­z-É™m, IPA: /ˈmælÉ™prɑːpɪzÉ™m/

Origin

From the name of Mrs. Malaprop, a character in the play The Rivals (1775) by + -ism. As dramatic characters in English comic plays of this time often had allusive names, it is likely that Sheridan fashioned the name from malapropos ("inappropriate"). Mrs. Malaprop is perhaps the best-known example of a familiar comedic character archetype who unintentionally substitutes inappropriate but like-sounding words that take on a ludicrous meaning when used incorrectly.

Full definition of malapropism

Noun

1. (uncountable) The blundering use of an absurdly inappropriate word or expression in place of a similar sounding one.The script employed malapropism to great effect.
2. (countable) An instance of this; malaprop.The translator matched every malapropism in the original with one from his own language.The humor comes from all the malapropisms.

Synonyms

• (instance of malapropism) malaprop