Common mistakes or misnomers

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Inspired by another thread.

Most people will know that wing mirrors are so called because they are fitted to the wing of your car. Door mirrors are so called because they are fitted to the door of your car.

There seems to be an increasing trend of folk muddling the above up. I suppose, as wing mirrors are consigned to history door mirrors might be known as wing mirrors.

Can you think of any other common misnomers or mistakes? (All the better if the mistake becomes the actual!)

Calling the clock tower at the Houses of Parliament Big Ben?

Robin Reliant?

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

Robin Reliant is pretty common and I wonder how that came about?

That got me wondering why a Jaguar E-Type is known as an E-Type Jaguar.

All the Ford literature I’ve ever seen refers to a Cortina Lotus, yet……

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V8covin said:

And none of it matters.....unless you're a member of the pedantic pistonheads club.....or should that be the pistonheads pedant club

That’s 99% of PH then!

In the end does anything matter?

That could be another thread

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Ooh, I’ve got another

Spiral staircase

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garyhun said:

Honest politician.

Not a phrase I’ve ever heard?

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Evoluzione said:

Doofus said:

Evoluzione said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

Ooh, I’ve got another

Spiral staircase

Go on, i'll be that person. Why is spiral staircase wrong?

Strictly speaking they're helical, not spiral.

The Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries don't support that.

It’s one of them that’s changed.

When I was a kid it was inflammable that burnt and non inflammable that didn’t.

Now it’s flammable that burns and inflammable that doesn’t

As said, a spiral is purely a 2 dimensional shape

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TwigtheWonderkid said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

All the Ford literature I’ve ever seen refers to a Cortina Lotus, yet……

The Mk1 was a Lotus Cortina, built by Lotus in Cheshunt using body shell and other bits supplied by Ford. The Mk2 was the Cortina Lotus, built in Dagenham by Ford using Lotus engine and suspension and bits.

I think.

Makes sense. All the handbooks I’ve had have been mark 2

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I’m liking pac code, PIN number and atm machine!

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Evoluzione said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

Evoluzione said:

Doofus said:

Evoluzione said:

2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:

Ooh, I’ve got another

Spiral staircase

Go on, i'll be that person. Why is spiral staircase wrong?

Strictly speaking they're helical, not spiral.

The Oxford and Cambridge dictionaries don't support that.

It’s one of them that’s changed.

When I was a kid it was inflammable that burnt and non inflammable that didn’t.

Now it’s flammable that burns and inflammable that doesn’t

As said, a spiral is purely a 2 dimensional shape

Sorry I disagree. There are different types of spirals, flat and downward. A staircase is a downward spiral.
If you think you can't have a spiral staircase then you have to write to all the dictionaries and ask them to change it.

I am about a hundred. When I was a kid we were taught that a spiral is purely a 2 dimension thing. Things may have changed.

You’ve given me another! Downward spiral!

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generationx said:

Louis Balfour said:

Wacky Racer said:

My mum once told me my driving was too erotic

Your mum said the same about my driving.

Just as an aside, this made me chuckle significantly.

My mate had a new girlfriend round to meet the parents. She proudly told them she’d been playing fellatio all afternoon. (She meant Subbuteo)

[2 sMoKiN bArReLs]

Not a misnomer or a mistake but….

…..when we approach a tight spot in the car the other half always says “breath in”

When you breath in you actually get wider.