More Cliche' Mashing

Cliche' mashing was not an intended feature of this blog, but banishing one by writing about it did work (mostly). Now, it seems I have a couple more banging around in those nether regions I fondly refer to as my mind.

Just last week, I was introduced to a new way of expressing "testing his mettle." While reading a book, an old book utilizing the old convoluted and self-conscious prose of the time, I came across a reference to a man's metal. It was a free Kindle version of the book and I dismissed it as a typing error, but then it was repeated.

I thought, "Well, even authors of days gone by made mistakes." What intrigued me, though, was not only a total of three references to the man's metal, but also a description mentioning the iron in the man!

So now I have this mashed cliche' running through my mind while I wonder, "Did the author not know the difference between mettle and metal or was he deliberately playing with my mind?"

Wish he was still alive so I could ask.

So while we're at it, here's another that flits in and out of the cobwebs between my ears - "for all intents and purposes." I think the mashed version, for all intensive purposes, was brought to me verbally, but I don't remember for sure.

I think what intrigues me the most about mashed cliches is the way they sound like the originals and can mean almost exactly the same, but can also mean something different.

Okay, I'll admit it - I'm a word geek.

But still, I want these bothersome phrases banished. Begone!