spoonerism
/ˈspuː.nəɹˌɪ.zəm/
spoonerism means A play on words on a phrase in which the initial (usually consonantal) sounds of two or more of the main words are transposed. It carries an Arena rating of 1534, earned across 2 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, spoonerism ranks #614 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #744 of 17,149 for Most Exacting Words, #791 of 17,104 for Most Storied Words, #1,030 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words.
spoonerism is pronounced /ˈspuː.nəɹˌɪ.zəm/.
Why “spoonerism” is a great word
A verbal error or playful transposition of the initial sounds of two or more words in a phrase. From the surname Spooner (of Reverend W. A. Spooner) + the suffix -ism (denoting a practice or characteristic). Named after the Oxford don Reverend William Archibald Spooner (1844–1930), who was reputed to habitually make such errors. Unlike a malapropism, which substitutes one word for a similar-sounding other, or metathesis, a general linguistic sound-swap, a spoonerism is the specific, often comedic, swapping of initial consonants between adjacent words. It is the weary scholar announcing 'the queer old dean' instead of the dear old queen, the flustered host offering a 'half-warmed fish,' or the accidental confession of having 'been caught in a lie' at the railway station—a tiny, human rebellion against the strict linear march of speech, revealing the delightful fragility of our intended meaning.
Etymology
From Spooner + -ism, named after Oxford don Reverend W. A. Spooner (1844–1930), who is supposed to have habitually made such slip-ups.
noun
- A play on words on a phrase in which the initial (usually consonantal) sounds of two or more of the main words are transposed.
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- spoonerize 83% match — To produce the kind of play on words called a spoonerism (from). vs spoonerism →
- metaphasis 67% match — The accidental transposition of part of the sounds of two words in a phrase; the production of spoonerisms. vs spoonerism →
- malapropism 59% match — The blundering use of an absurdly inappropriate word or expression in place of a similar-sounding one. vs spoonerism →
- pickwickianism 53% match — The arbitrary or meaningless use of language. vs spoonerism →
- semordnilap 52% match — A word, phrase, or sentence that has the property of forming another word, phrase, or sentence when its letters are reversed. A semordnilap differs from a palindrome in that the word or phrase resulting from the reversal is different from the original word or phrase. vs spoonerism →
- spenserism 52% match — A word or phrase due to Edmund Spenser (c.1552–1599), English poet. vs spoonerism →
- adnomination 50% match — A form of wordplay in which phonetically similar words are juxtaposed. vs spoonerism →
- websterism 50% match — An orthographic convention due to Noah Webster (1758-1843), American lexicographer and spelling reformer. vs spoonerism →