Tongue slips

What did you just say?! VIP people also have a record of malapropisms!

We’ve all experienced a moment when a word comes out of a word mouth sounding confident, polished… And completely wrong! Maybe no one noticed, maybe everyone did. Whatever the case, that’s called a malapropism, and they happen when a word sounds close enough to the right one. The result can go from charming to catastrophic, especially if it happens in public. Here are some real-life examples of those verbal stumbles.

During a conversation about elections, the then Vice President George Bush was chatting with baseball great Yogi Berra. Berra reportedly mentioned that Texas had plenty of "electrical votes." Can you guess what he meant? The correct words would’ve been "electroral," but the slip was classic Yogi.

After a tough boxing match in 2002, Mike Tyson was asked what came next for him. His answer? He might just "fade into Bolivian." The word he wanted was oblivion, but his version stole the spotlight. Who can blame him? Any of us who make a mistake after receiving a punch or two!

David Letterman once teased Justin Bieber by saying that too many tattoos could make him look like the Sistine Chapel. Bieber shot back that he wasn’t aiming for the "Sixteenth Chapel" look. The reply came fast and confident, which made it even funnier. Although Michelangelo, among others, would not agree, right?

Comedian Norm Crosby leaned into malapropisms so hard that it became his signature. He was known as The Master of Malaprop for a reason. One of his lines famously urged listeners to enjoy the "blabbing brook" instead of the babbling one. But in his hands, the wrong word was never an accident: It was the whole joke.

Shakespeare gave us a lot of new words, and some malapropisms too. For example, in Much Ado About Nothing, his character Constable Dogberry was famous for confidently saying the wrong thing. When Dogberry reports that two men were "comprehended" instead of "apprehended," and calls them "auspicious" instead of "suspicious," the comedy writes itself!

What kind of installation? These malapropism belongs to baseball player Mike Smith, who once praised a new coat by saying it had lots of "installation." He probably just meant "insulation," referring to how warm it was! He meant it as a compliment, besides, he’s a baseball player, what does he know about fashion features!

Former Chicago mayor Richard J. Daley had his share of word tangles. He reportedly referred to tandem bicycles as "tantrum" bicycles and called the O’Hare Airport the "crosswords of the nation." The intent was clear, even if the delivery wandered.

Gib Lewis, who served as Texas Speaker of the House, once described something as "unparalyzed in the state’s history." The word he wanted was unparalleled, as you can imagine. Still, the statement landed with confidence, which is often half the battle. Moreover, it’s a good thing that whatever he was talking about wasn’t paralyzed, right?

Literature is full of malapropisms, and Mark Twain hasn’t got his record completely clean. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, he gave Aunt Sally a memorable twist. She says she was "putrified with astonishment," and even if we know he meant "petrified," the picture it paints is clear and brilliant. Twain was fully conscious that these humorous words only contributed to the character’s development.

Archie Bunker from All in the Family was a gold mine for malapropisms. He once asked if he looked like an "inferior decorator" and wrapped things up by saying "Molotov" instead of Mazel tov. His mangled phrases were part of what made the character feel real, stubborn, and unintentionally funny. Did you like him?

KNOW YOUR BRANDS

Discover the Backstories of These 10 Iconic Brand Names

Image: Slidebean

In the vast consumer goods marketplace, brands often become more than just names on labels; they become symbols of quality, trust, and innovation.

However, behind every successful brand lies a unique backstory, often filled with ingenuity, perseverance, and sometimes even a tad of serendipity. Read on to find out the intriguing stories behind 10 household names that have left an indelible mark on the world.

Image: Bryan Angelo

Amazon has been around for 25 years now, but before becoming the giant that it is, it shapeshifted several times. Jeff Bezos, its creator, first built an online bookstore intending to offer an unparalleled selection of titles and exceptional customer service. This brand was named "Cadabra", a clear reference to "abracadabra," a magic word.

However, Bezos’ lawyer at the time considered it an obscure name, and in 1994, Bezos and his wife started exploring other names and registered several domains, like "relentless.com" just in case one of those was going to be the one. Eventually, he decided he wanted a brand starting with the letter A, the first in the alphabet, and, after perusing the dictionary, he landed on the word Amazon, the largest river on the planet. The superlative had the winning factor and the rest is history.

Image: Pawel Czerwinski

Larry Page and Sergey Brin, two graduate students at Stanford University began collaborating on a search engine project in 1996. Their initial goal was to create a more efficient way to navigate the World Wide Web. Originally named "Backrub" due to its focus on analyzing backlinks, the project eventually evolved into what we now know as Google, but the name was actually the product of a misspelling.

Sean Anderson, a Stanford graduate, pitched the term "googolplex" in a brainstorming session for the name change. However, Page countered a simple version of it "Googol", which denotes a colossal number in mathematics: the digit 1 followed by a hundred zeros.

When checking the availability of the domain, Anderson accidentally typed Google and Page liked this version of the name best. They secured it on September 15, 1997, marking the birth of a digital giant.

Image: wu yi

Originally founded as "Blue Ribbon Sports" in 1964 by Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman, the company’s beginnings were quite humble. Knight, a former middle-distance runner at the University of Oregon, and Bowerman, his coach, shared a passion for improving athletic performance. They joined forces to import Japanese sports shoes from the Onitsuka factory to the United States.

The pivotal moment of the company came in 1971 when they rebranded it as Nike, a name inspired by the Greek goddess of victory. In Greek mythology, Nike is often depicted as a divine figure symbolizing victory, strength, and speed. This name, together with the presentation of the Swoosh logo marked the beginning of a new era.

Image: Laurenz Heymann

Steve Jobs may be the one you think of when you think of Apple, but the brand was co-created with Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne in 1976. The name, however, was in fact Jobs’ invention and it has more than one backstory. In Jobs’ biography by Walter Isaacson, the creator himself admits that he came up with the name while he was on a fruitarian diet. He mentions having visited an apple farm and considering the name because it was "fun, spirited and not intimidating." This story was confirmed by Wozniak who drove him back from the airport after that trip.

However, there is another reason why the brand was named "Apple," and that is because, just like with Jeff Bezos’ Amazon, Jobs intended to have consumers find his brand before his competitor Atari in the phone book.

Image: Henry & Co.

You drink their coffee every couple of days, and you probably use their space as an office and a place of recreation, but have you ever wondered why Starbucks is called Starbucks? The coffee company is a titan of the industry with good reason, and the story behind its name is just as interesting.

Bowker, Baldwin, and Siegl - Starbucks’ founders - set off with a simple goal: finding a powerful name. According to marketing specialists st****- words have that strength. The three men started scouting around for a name and came across a small town called Starbo, on a mining map. That was enough for Gordon Bowker to think of Moby Dick’s character, Starbuck.

As the company itself states, this name evokes "the romance of the high seas and the seafaring tradition of the early coffee traders."

Image: Zheka Kapusta

We bet that if you take your eyes off this article and look around, you’ll find at least one thing from IKEA, isn’t that right? That is because IKEA is part of our everyday life, and leaving their stores empty-handed is almost impossible.

We have Ingvar Kamprad to thank for this amazing creation, and if you pay close attention, you already know where the name comes from. That is right, IKEA is an acronym and the two first letters belong to the founder’s initials.

As for the E and the A in it, the first stands for Elmtaryd, which is the name of the farm Kamprad grew up on, and the second stands for Agunnaryd, the name of his village. Put it all together and you get IKEA, and probably a piece of furniture too.

Image: NIKHIL

Pepsi has carved out a sparkling legacy spanning more than a century. Its journey has been one of continuous evolution making it an iconic global drink. This beverage originated as a remedy for stomach discomfort, thanks to Caleb Bradhma, a pharmacist in North Carolina. Seeking a name that better encapsulated its essence, Bradham eventually settled on "Pepsi-Cola" in 1902, having purchased the moniker "Pep Kola" from a local competitor.

Interestingly, the name "Pepsi" finds its roots in "dyspepsia," a medical term that means indigestion. By the 19th century, this was a very common affection, and products to cure it contained animal pepsin, a digestive enzyme. Although Pepsi never included this ingredient in its list, Bradham used this to his favor to sell Pepsi around!

Image: Jason Leung

Nintendo, a household name in the gaming industry traces back to 1889, when it embarked on its journey with the humble venture into the playing card business. The moniker "Nintendo" was chosen for this initial foray, which comes from the Japanese language, as its creator.

Nintendo, which means "leave luck to heaven" is not just a label, it is the founder Fusajiro Yamuchi’s philosophical approach towards the nature of card games. Fast forward to the 1970s, and Nintendo made a pivotal shift into the burgeoning realm of video games. Despite the drastic change in industry and product, the company opted to maintain the original name. This decision was about both brand continuity and a testament to Ninendo’s enduring commitment to innovation.

Image: Boshoku

McDonald's is the number one titan of the fast-food industry and it dates back to 1940. It all began with a modest barbecue restaurant established by Richard and Maurice McDonald. Little did they know that their journey would evolve into a global phenomenon.

Even if the company takes its name from the owners, the pivotal moment came when Ray Kroc, a tenacious milkshake machine salesman entered the picture. He acknowledged the potential of the kitchen setup and saw an opportunity for expansion. Under Kroc’s leadership, McDonald’s underwent a transformative journey and became an empire of golden arches spanning across the continent keeping the name of the family that first created the brand and honoring it with the many variations of it we can find in the name of the dishes.

Image: Babak Habibi

What began in 1969 as a modest enterprise has blossomed into a global powerhouse, leaving an indelible mark on industries ranging from electronics to finance and beyond. At the heart of Samsung’s identity lies its name, a beacon of aspiration and promise.

In Korean, Samsung translates to "three stars," a poignant reflection of founder Lee Byung-chull’s lofty ambitions for the company. To him, the name was more than a mere designation, it embodied a vision of brilliance, strength, and enduring radiance. Each star symbolized a face of his vision: largeness, abundance, and resilience. And they have certainly honored this story as it has rapidly become an icon of innovation and enterprise with unwavering determination.