Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Misnomers

A misnomer is a term which suggests an interpretation that is known to be untrue.

Here are a few examples:

* An inchworm is neither an inch long, nor a worm.
* Greenland is icy and Iceland is greener)
* Panama hats are not made in Panama, but Ecuador
* The “lead” in pencils is made of graphite and clay, not lead
* Northwestern University is in northeastern Illinois, a midwestern state.
* “Tin foil” is almost always actually aluminum.
* Catgut is made from sheep intestines.
* The Hundred Years’ War did not last for 100 years but 116.
* Head cheese is actually a meat product.
* “Horny toads” or “horned frogs” are actually lizards.
* Though a starfish is star-shaped, as the name suggests, it is not a fish.
* An inchworm is neither an inch long, nor a worm.
* The titmouse is a bird, not a mouse.
* Jellyfish are not fish.
* The Washington Redskins play in Landover, Maryland.
* The New York Jets and New York Giants play in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
* Scotland Yard is located in England.
* The “funny bone” is not a bone — the phrase instead refers to the ulnar nerve.
* During its peak, rush hour often lasts more than an hour, with very little, if any, movement.
* A parkway is a type of street or road where parking is generally prohibited.
* A residential driveway is intended for parking.

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