When you accidentally flip the beginning or ending sounds of two words when speaking, that's a Spoonerism.
We all make mistakes when speaking off the cuff. Sometimes we flub a word, stutter, or forget the point we were trying to make. Other times, our slip-ups are far more hilarious, like when we unwittingly swap the beginning or ending sounds of two words in a sentence.
"I'm going to bead a rook," or "I'll see you at Brunday Sunch," may seem like random gaffs, but they are actually a well-documented phenomenon with a strange history and an official, if goofy-sounding, name: Spoonerisms.
It all started with a man named William Archibald Spooner in the 1800s.
Spooner, a tutor and eventually Dean at New College of Oxford, was initially known for his kindness—even though he was also a little odd.
New College, Oxford; the birthplace of the SpoonerismHoncques Laus/Wikmedia Commons
"One touching story describes how Spooner insisted on providing an Egyptian student with extra blankets and warm clothes, as the boy was struggling with the British climate. Another tells of a student who had injured himself while playing hockey. Spooner paid for his medical expenses, as his family could not afford them. Spooner’s odd behaviour could be off-putting at times, but he had his students’ best interests at heart" writes Sami Anderson-Talbi for New College.
Soon after, however, he began to be known for something else: His absent-mindedness and a tendency to flub his words in a peculiar manner. These were quickly dubbed Spoonerisms by his students, and the legend grew rapidly.
Anderson-Talbi writes that a Spoonerism is defined as, "the unintentional mix-up of parts or words, thoughts, and phrases, often resulting in humorous phrases or situations."
Documented Spoonerisms include referring to a "Dr. Childe's Friend" as "Dr. Friend's child," and warning a group of undergraduate students about the "weight of rages" (rate of wages). But soon, Spooner's reputation for misspeaking grew and more and more examples came to light. Some of them were apocryphal, others were complete fiction, including:
- "It is kisstomary to cuss the bride." (It is customary to kiss the bride.)
- "You have hissed all my mystery lectures." (You have missed all my history lectures.)
- "You have tasted two worms." (You have wasted two terms.)
- "Sew me to another sheet." (Show me to another seat.)
- "The Lord is a shoving leopard." (The Lord is a loving shepherd.)
But at that point, the reputation stuck.
Sadly, Spooner wasn't a huge fan of his silly reputation.Bain News Service/Wikimedia Commons
Spoonerisms were far from an inside joke on the Oxford campus. In 1924, Spooner wrote in his diary that he met an American woman who was thrilled to meet a "celebrity" such as himself.
In fact, the mythical power of Spoonerisms was so strong that Spooner is said to have spoken extremely slowly with many pauses in an effort to make fewer mistakes. But his thought process was also evident in his writings, with many words crossed out and paragraphs rife with errors. "Spooner’s mind seemed to move at a pace faster than his mouth—or in this case pen—could keep up with," writes Anderson-Talbi.
Spooner was not a fan of his reputation for Spoonerisms, and after one speech, sighed and announced, "And now I suppose you will expect me to say one of those things."
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Language Testing International writes that Spoonerisms can be caused by any number of factors. Most commonly, rushing or being distracted when speaking can lead to mixing up your words. So can a sort of computing error in your brain, where the sentence you were planning on saying changes at the very last second and the words come out mixed up. Spoonerisms can also show up more when you're tired, or in children, who have to work harder to focus on correct diction.
It's not just English, either. Different languages have Spoonerisms too.
Frequent Spoonerisms can also sometimes be anecdotally linked to disabilities like Dyslexia or ADHD. Difficulties with speech or any condition where someone's brain is moving "faster" than their mouth can manifest in slip-ups like Spoonerisms.
Ultimately, however, we are all guilty of the occasional Spoonerism. And though Spooner himself didn't love that the flubs were officially named after him, he may have felt better if he knew how much laughter and delight we all get out of each other's Spoonerisms today.