Mondegreen

What Is a "Mondegreen"?

A mondegreen is a misheard word or phrase from a song or poem. Here is an example of a mondegreen:

• Alice [singing] "♪ The ants are my friends. They're blowing in the wind. ♪"
• John: "Did you just say 'The ants are my friends'?"
• Alice: "Yes. I love Bob Dylan."
• John: "It's 'The answer my friend is blowin' in the wind.'"
• Alice: "Ha ha, I've been singing about ants for years."

Mondegreens occur when the listener's brain fills in what it expects or makes sense of the sounds in a different way.

A mondegreen is a mishearing of song lyric or poem.

The Origin of "Mondegreen"

The word "mondegreen" is itself a mondegreen. The term was coined in 1954 in an essay by American writer Sylvia Wright, who recounted a childhood memory of mishearing a line from a Scottish ballad.

The Version Wright Heard	The Correct Version
"They hae slain the Earl o' Moray, And Lady Mondegreen."	"They hae slain the Earl o' Moray, And laid him on the green."

More Examples of Mondegreens

Here are some common mondegreens:

The Mondegreen	The Correct Version	The Song or Poem
"Kicking your cat all over the place."	"Kicking your can all over the place."	"We Will Rock You" (Queen)
"It doesn't make a difference if we're naked or not."	"It doesn't make a difference if we make it or not."	"Living on a Prayer" (Bon Jovi)
"Sweet dreams are made of cheese."	"Sweet dreams are made of this."	"Sweet Dreams" (Eurythmics)
"Hold me closer, Tony Danza."	"Hold me closer, tiny dancer."	"Tiny Dancer" (Elton John)
"The girl with colitis goes by."	"The girl with kaleidoscope eyes."	"Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" (The Beatles)
"There's a bathroom on the right."	"There's a bad moon on the rise."	"Bad Moon Rising" (Creedence Clearwater Revival)
"Should I give up, or should I just keep chasing penguins?"	"Should I give up, or should I just keep chasing pavements?"	"Chasing Pavements" (Adele)
"Excuse me while I kiss this guy."	"Excuse me while I kiss the sky."	"Purple Haze" (Jimi Hendrix)
"I left my brains down in Africa."	"I bless the rains down in Africa."	"Africa" (Toto)
"Steak and a knife, steak and a knife!"	"Stayin' alive, stayin' alive!"	"Stayin' Alive" (Bee Gees)
"Like a virgin touched for the thirty-first time."	"Like a virgin touched for the very first time."	"Like a Virgin" (Madonna)
"I'm a pool hall ace."	"How my poor heart aches."	"Every Breath You Take" (The Police)
"See that girl, watch her scream, kicking the dancing queen."	"See that girl, watch that scene, diggin' the dancing queen."	"Dancing Queen" (ABBA)
"Wrapped up like a douche."	"Revved up like a deuce."	"Blinded by the Light" (Bruce Springsteen)
"Let's pee in the corner, let's pee in the spotlight."	"That's me in the corner, that's me in the spotlight."	"Losing My Religion" (R.E.M.)
"Secret Asian man."	"Secret agent man."	"Time After Time" (Cyndi Lauper)
"I can see clearly now, Lorraine is gone."	"I can see clearly now, the rain is gone."	"I Can See Clearly Now" (Johnny Nash)
"We're caught in a trout."	"We're caught in a trap."	– "Suspicious Minds" (Elvis Presley)
"I'll never leave your pizza burning."	"I'll never be your beast of burden."	"Beast of Burden" (The Rolling Stones)
"I got my first real six-string, bought it at the five-and-dime."	"I got my first real sex dream, oh it was a five-and-dime."	"Summer of '69" (Bryan Adams)

"We Built This City on Sausage Rolls"

This mondegreen is worthy of a special mention:

The Mondegreen	The Correct Version	The Song or Poem
"We built this city on sausage rolls."	"We built this city on rock and roll."	"We Built This City" (Starship)

This mondegreen became a real song! In 2018, LadBaby (a British YouTuber) released a song entitled "We Built This City on Sausage Rolls". It topped the UK Christmas charts.

Mondegreens vs Malapropisms

A mondegreen is a type of malapropism, which is the word for an incorrect word or phrase resulting from a mishearing. Here are some examples of malapropisms:

Standard Malapropism	Correct Version
doggy-dog world	dog-eat-dog world
duck tape	duct tape
biting my time	biding my time
Chester drawers	chest of drawers

Also of note, if a malapropism occurs for a logical reason, then it is classified as an eggcorn. In other words, an eggcorn is an incorrect word or phrase that derives from a logical mishearing.

Eggcorn	Correct Version
damp squid	damp squib
sir name	surname
preying mantis	praying mantis
beckon call	beck and call

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