malaphor means an idiom blend: an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 88 out of 100.
Why this word is great
MALAPHOR — [Noun] An idiom blend, being an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result. It is a portmanteau of malapropism (a mistaken word) and metaphor (a figure of speech), coined by Lawrence Harrison in 1976. Unlike a malapropism (which substitutes a similar-sounding word, like "allegory" for "alligator") or a mixed metaphor (which yokes incompatible images, like "we'll burn that bridge when we come to it"), a malaphor is the pure, accidental fusion of two tired expressions into one jarringly novel whole. It is the sound of mental gears slipping, the jarring scent of two perfumes clashing, and the palpable warmth of social embarrassment that follows utterances like "it's not rocket surgery" or the vow to "take the bull by the horns of a dilemma." In these stitched-together clichés, one hears the comforting rhythm of speech desperately trying to maintain its own momentum, even as the ground of meaning gives way.
noun
- An idiom blend: an error in which two similar figures of speech are merged, producing an often nonsensical result.“What I conclude from this admittedly narrow data base is that, while the malaphor flourishes in bureaucratic compost, it will grow just about anywhere. The following malaphors are my pick of the letters. They were uttered in the home, on the farm, in the street.”