Etymology

From the name of Mrs. Malaprop, a character in the play The Rivals (1775) by Richard Brinsley Sheridan + -ism. (As dramatic characters in English comic plays of this time often had allusive names, it is likely that Sheridan fashioned the name from . Mrs. Malaprop is perhaps the best-known example of a familiar comedic character archetype who unintentionally substitutes inappropriate but like-sounding words that take on a ludicrous meaning when used incorrectly.)

Noun

1. The blundering use of an absurdly inappropriate word or expression in place of a similar sounding one.

   The script employed malapropism to great effect.

   Malapropism is much older as a phenomenon than it is as a word.

2. An instance of this.

   The translator matched every malapropism in the original with one from his own language.

   The humor comes from all the malapropisms.

See also

• Examples of malapropisms
• eggcorn
• folk etymology
• mondegreen
• spoonerism