GRAMMAR GLITCHES

The 10 Funniest Mistakes, Typos, And Misprints In History

Image: Natalia Y.

Everyone makes mistakes, that’s a given. But sometimes, even the smallest slip-ups can lead to catastrophic outcomes, no matter how unintentional. These grammatical gaffes stand as a testament to the power of language, reminding us to always proofread before making history.

From political slip-ups to literary lapses, here are ten instances where, er… let’s call them unexpected linguistic detours, induced everything from laughter to financial ruin.

Image: Lars Blankers

In 1992, during a visit to a New Jersey elementary school, then Vice President Dan Quayle put himself in an embarrassing situation when he tried to correct what he thought was a spelling mistake. After a 12-year-old student correctly spelled the word "potato", he promptly added an e to the end of the word, creating an awkward moment as he insisted that "potatoe" was the correct spelling.

Image: Priscilla Du Preez

A 1631 edition of the Bible became infamous as it contains a number of mistakes that substantially distort the intended message of the sacred text. Known as the "Wicked Bible", among its most egregious blunders is the omission of the word "not" from one of the Ten Commandments, transforming the original sentence into the scandalous directive, "Thou shalt commit adultery." However, some argue that this was not a product of lazy proofreading, but rather sabotage from a competitor.

Image: Taha

Constable Dogberry, a character in one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies Much Ado About Nothing, became the namesake for malapropisms, as he consistently ends up uttering absurd phrases while attempting to sound intelligent. Some of the most popular "dogberryisms" include confusing suspect with respect, ex-communication with communication, comprehend with apprehend, and even redemption with damnation!

Image: SpaceX

How expensive can a typo be? Well, as NASA found out, almost 80 million dollars. In 1962, a missing mathematical symbol in Mariner I’s code led to the spacecraft blowing up in a million pieces over the Atlantic. How could this happen? Apparently, an engineer missed an overbar (a mathematical figure that indicates the mean of a set) while transcribing the calculations by hand. This caused the spacecraft to overcorrect its trajectory, eventually throwing it off course.

The takeaway from this story is simple: always proofread. After all, even the most brilliant people are not immune to making mistakes.

Image: micheile henderson

Talking about expensive typos, a misplaced comma in the 13th Tariff Act cost the United States over 40 million dollars in 1872. The Act included a list of items exempt from taxation upon entry to the country, and included in the list was an item that read "fruit, plants tropical and semi-tropical for the purpose of propagation or cultivation."

According to the government, the comma was meant to be a hyphen, meaning fruit-bearing plants, but the correct grammatical interpretation suggested that all fruit were included in the exemption. It took almost two years to fix the mistake, but it was already too late.

Image: Janko Ferlič

Don’t worry kids, Yogi Bear is totally fine. But for a moment in 2015, Associated Press declared the cherished bear dead, when someone published Yankees’ legend Yogi Berra’s obituary under a hysterical title: "Yogi Bear has died. He was 90." While this was likely the mix-up of an underslept intern, Berra was known for his amusing unintentional witticisms and malapropisms, remembered for gems like "It ain't over 'til it's over," "It's déjà vu all over again," and "Nobody goes there anymore. It's too crowded."

Image: AbsolutVision

In a peculiar incident in December 2017, a Cambridge newspaper unintentionally became viral when a placeholder reading "100PT SPLASH HEADING HERE" found its way into the headlines. Meant for internal use during layout, the cryptic text unexpectedly amused readers and sparked online speculation, with some even joking about the headline being a warning of an incoming tsunami wave. The newspaper’s editor-in-chief later apologized profusely for the amusing mishap, which was allegedly caused by a technical issue.

Image: Michał Parzuchowski

Around 2010, an article from an unknown local newspaper went viral for misspelling "Mississippi" as "Missippi." You might argue that they simplified it, but the funniest part is that the article was about the purported success of a literacy program in the state. Maybe the program needed to focus on newspapers too.

Image: Peter Lawrence

The Guardian, one of the UK's most renowned newspapers, earned an unintentional reputation for its numerous typos. In a memorable blunder, it once printed its own name as "Gaurdian," prompting satirical magazine Private Eye to nickname them "Grauniad." Overall, the newspaper took it in good stride, and the nickname is still playfully used, even among its journalists, to refer to the media outlet with a touch of humor.

Image: Daria Kraplak

Unbeknownst to most, James Joyce’s famous novel Finnegans Wake hides an easter egg of sorts. When it comes to an author famous for his experimental and gibberish-like writing, what can possibly be considered a mistake or a typo? Well, it seems the author used to dictate parts of his work to his friend Samuel Beckett, and during one of these sessions, someone knocked at the door, with Joyce immediately saying "Come in." Without thinking twice, Beckett wrote that along with the rest of Joyce’s dictation. It is likely that Joyce noticed the gaffe, but decided to leave it there just to mess with the readers.

BEHIND THE FACADES

10 Stories Behind Some Of The World's Most Iconic Buildings

Image: Zen zeee

Buildings are more than just their structures; they hold stories, secrets, and even marks of their original builders. Some iconic buildings are known for the unique construction methods used to erect them, while others became famous for the historical events that took place inside.

Let’s explore the tales and stories behind some of the 10 most interesting architectural marvels in the world!

Image: Nghia Luong

The Eiffel Tower is one of the most iconic landmarks in the entire world, though it still has a few secrets that most people ignore. For example, did you know that hidden within the wrought iron lattice of the Eiffel Tower lies a cozy apartment?

The dream unit was designed by Gustave Eiffel himself to be used as his private retreat and studio. Today, visitors can see a recreation of his office that includes wax sculptures of Eiffel, his daughter, and Thomas Edison.

Image: Sylwia Bartyzel

The Taj Mahal is laden with secrets and all sorts of design tricks that baffle even modern architects. One of the most remarkable is the optical illusion that visitors experience when they view the massive monument for the first time. When framed by the main gate the Taj Mahal seems enormous, but as one moves closer, it shrinks.

The angles and proportions of the entrance were carefully calculated in order to create this effect, and this goes to show the amount of attention to detail Mughal architects had.

Image: Heidi Kaden

The Leaning Tower of Pisa's iconic tilt wasn't intentional but rather the result of an engineering miscalculation. As construction progressed, the soft ground beneath one side of the tower began to sink, causing the famous lean.

Interestingly, many attempts have been made to prevent the tower from toppling, but some tilt was intentionally preserved as making the tower straight would rip it of its historical identity. In fact, were it not for its soft foundations, the tower might have not survived until now, because the dynamic soil-structure relationship helped it withstand at least four strong earthquakes since the year 1280.

Image: Emiliano Bar

When the Empire State Building was under construction during the Great Depression, it was a race against time and finances. Competing with the Chrysler Building for the title of the world's tallest skyscraper, the Empire State Building rose at an astonishing pace, taking only 20 months of construction from start to finish!

It was built at such record speed that not only was it completed ahead of schedule, but it also remained under its original proposed budget. Quite impressive, huh?

Image: Tyler Duston

The Sydney Opera House is synonymous with architectural brilliance, but its construction was marred by a bitter feud between architect Jørn Utzon and the project's overseers. The visionary design - and particularly the iconic sail-like roof - faced numerous engineering challenges that pushed the project over its initial budget. In fact, things got so heated that Utzon himself resigned in 1966, way before the building was completed.

Image: William Olivieri

Rome was - presumably - not built in a day, and the Great Wall of China wasn’t either, and by a long shot. It actually took over 2,000 years to build it in its entirety, with each successive dynasty in power continuing the project during their reign.

Also, this was not done without human suffering: thousands of laborers, including soldiers and prisoners, toiled under harsh conditions to keep enlarging the monumental structure. Some even claim that deceased workers were often buried within the wall, as a haunting tribute to their sacrifice.

Image: Nick Fewings

Akin to a vertical small city, the Burj Khalifa’s massiveness cannot be understated. Its construction pushed the boundaries of engineering, with a team of international experts overcoming numerous challenges, including extreme temperatures and high winds.

Did you know that it takes three full months only to clean the windows from top to bottom? The building also hosts the world’s longest single-running elevator, which services 140 floors!

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For over five centuries, China's Forbidden City served as the imperial palace and political center of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Behind its majestic walls, once accessible only to the emperor, his family, and trusted officials, lie countless secrets and legends. One intriguing curiosity is that the ancient palace is still inhabited by some of its original dwellers: stray cats!

During the Ming and Qing dynasties, cats were welcome within the palace’s walls as the fluffy companions of the royal family, and long after the dynasties disappeared the cats remained in the Forbidden City, effectively making them the last living descendants of Chinese royalty.

Image: David Libeert

Almost everything about the Colosseum is jaw-droppingly insane. But one of the most overlooked facts is its use as a venue for naval battles. Yes, you read that right! In addition to the gladiatorial contests and wild animal hunts, the Colosseum's massive arena was occasionally flooded to recreate epic sea battles known as "Naumachia." These spectacles, complete with replica ships and trained sailors, as one could imagine, provided unsurpassed entertainment for ancient Romans.

Image: Michael Fousert

Originally built as a medieval fortress in the 12th century, the Louvre has undergone numerous transformations over the centuries. From a royal residence to a public museum, its layered architecture reflects the changing tastes and priorities of French monarchs and leaders. Nowadays, it is home to an astounding amount of art. Actually, it is literally impossible to see the entirety of it in just one visit. Were you to spend just 30 seconds per artwork, it would take you a hundred days to see it all.