Comments on: A warning shot in the dark.

A warning shot in the dark.

beagle — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 09:41:34 -0800

A warning shot in the dark: For connoisseurs of clever turns of phrase: The phrase "a warning shot in the dark" popped out at me from a Google News preview panel as being a mixed metaphor. Indeed, a Google search reveals that the phrase has never before been used on the entire Web, which is rather amazing. Delving into the story, it appears by paragraph three that the mixed metaphors are appropriate, in this case.

By: squidman

squidman — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 09:56:28 -0800

Google search reveals that the phrase has never before been used on the entire Web Google is pretty good but I doubt that its omniscient ;)

By: jkaczor

jkaczor — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:19:12 -0800

How did I know if it was going to have *mixed metaphors* it would be about sports?

By: ODiV

ODiV — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:24:18 -0800

Is a warning shot a metaphor?

By: ODiV

ODiV — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:25:48 -0800

Or is it more like a simile?

By: LittleMissCranky

LittleMissCranky — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:26:29 -0800

Unless there's an actual gun, it's a metaphor.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:27:11 -0800

Actually, it's not a mixed metaphor at all -- it's a perfectly consistent metaphor created by combining two cliches. Clever, but not (IMO) worth a front page post.

By: LittleMissCranky

LittleMissCranky — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:27:31 -0800

Damn it, ODiv, your double post is forcing me to double post. A simile necessarily uses "like" or "as."

By: WolfDaddy

WolfDaddy — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:32:37 -0800

Even scarier is when you are the one responsible for releasing a meme into the ether, at least according to Google.

By: oissubke

oissubke — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:37:15 -0800

Even scarier is when you are the one responsible for releasing a meme into the ether, at least according to Google. Is it really a meme if nobody else is saying it? I only saw one Google result there...

By: Tacodog

Tacodog — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:39:33 -0800

If we isolate the meme now, it'll stop propagating. But we'll burn that bridge after we cross it.

By: yerfatma

yerfatma — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:40:50 -0800

Actually, it's not a mixed metaphor at all Then what is the proper definition of a mixed metaphor (I'm not disagreeing with someone named languagehat, I'm just asking)?

By: oissubke

oissubke — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:43:52 -0800

Then what is the proper definition of a mixed metaphor (I'm not disagreeing with someone named languagehat, I'm just asking)? It may be a mixed metaphor in the strict sense, but the phrase implies an accidental slip of the tongue (or a poor memory) resulting in an awkward combination of two metaphors. In this case, the combination of "warning shot" and "shot in the dark" appeared to be intentional, so it doesn't seem to fit the connotations of "mixed metaphor".

By: drobot

drobot — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:46:47 -0800

According to the Merriam Webster - a figure of speech combining inconsistent or incongruous metaphors Here is more information, including an example.

By: Succa

Succa — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:47:00 -0800

How does this relate to Googlewhacking, is the question.

By: holycola

holycola — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:49:16 -0800

Google search reveals that the phrase has never before been used on the entire Web That's not certain, I think, since Google doesn't index words like "the" and "in"... but it's certainly a rare construction and new to me.

By: iconomy

iconomy — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:52:59 -0800

I don't think we're dealing with mixed metaphors, I think we're dealing with the Before and After category on Wheel of Fortune. You know...like Fishing Rod Stewart, or Long Day's Journey Into Night of the Living Dead.

By: pjdoland

pjdoland — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:55:24 -0800

My sister once heard a friend, who spoke English as a second language, say, "We'll burn that bridge when we come to it." Brilliant.

By: stevefromsparks

stevefromsparks — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 10:57:53 -0800

Wow, so if it's not on Google, it's never been on the web. I knew Google was good, but I didn't know it was that good.

By: oissubke

oissubke — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 11:03:13 -0800

Wow, so if it's not on Google, it's never been on the web. I knew Google was good, but I didn't know it was that good. If you're going to be sarcastic, at least try to make it witty or amusing or something...

By: soundofsuburbia

soundofsuburbia — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 11:06:48 -0800

[off topic] All this makes me think of one of my favourite quotes ever.

Shoplifting is a victimless crime, like punching someone in the dark.

- Nelson [/off topic]

By: Frank Grimes

Frank Grimes — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 11:28:29 -0800

"Warning shot" and "Shot in the dark" mixed it up at googlefight and "shot in the dark" won.

By: WolfDaddy

WolfDaddy — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 11:59:31 -0800

Is it really a meme if nobody else is saying it? I only saw one Google result there... Well, this is kinda what I was saying: don't fully trust Google to be the bellwether when looking for completely new ideas on the web. I certainly didn't originate that saying, but if we follow the logic of "a Google search reveals that the phrase has never before been used on the entire Web", I am the one responsible. And I don't want that kind of responsibility!

By: ArcAm

ArcAm — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 12:07:30 -0800

Did anyone else notice the "sponsored link" for the google search: "warning shot in the dark"? Maybe I'm the only one to have found it funny.

By: Silune

Silune — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 12:44:42 -0800

Mixed Metaphors to Delight and Amaze You I like "Marching to the beat of a dead horse."

By: jaded

jaded — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:02:22 -0800

From the site linked above, my favorite: It's not rocket surgery.

By: krunk

krunk — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:21:22 -0800

a simile is like a metaphor :^)

By: stavrosthewonderchicken

stavrosthewonderchicken — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:23:33 -0800

"We'll burn that bridge when we come to it." The way I've lived most of my adult life. And those last two from jaded and Silune are comedy gold. I love it.

By: cortex

cortex — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:26:50 -0800

Whereas the metaphor is a mutant simile, yes. :) Also, it's not too hard to claim a monopoly on an unlike google search, as I've learned.

By: kindall

kindall — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 13:56:15 -0800

My sister once heard a friend, who spoke English as a second language, say ... A friend of mine says that his girlfriend's mother is full of malapropisms. One time, he claims, she accused them of having too lavish a lifestyle -- "living high on the cob." His girlfriend has apparently inherited this propensity.

By: dhartung

dhartung — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 14:14:47 -0800

The old New Yorker used to feature short filler material at the end of their articles, in different categories. One was called Block That Metaphor! and involved horrendously mangled and mixed metaphors, or in rarer cases, one overriding metaphor carried well beyond necessity. Oh, and Google should have found this: "Warning! Shot in the dark ahead."; tip o' the hat to All The Web. Also, A Shot in the Dark beats Warning Shot, though it's just a guess.

By: Hildago

Hildago — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 15:59:25 -0800

Sounds like a mixed metaphor to me languagehat, as the two metaphors involved don't illustrate the same idea. In fact, they're closer to being opposites than to being equal. It's certainly evocative though. I like it.

By: Secret Life of Gravy

Secret Life of Gravy — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 19:52:21 -0800

Silune, thanks for the link! I laughed quite a bit. For some reason, this one in particular made me laugh: Once again, the Achilles' heel of the Philadelphia Eagles' defense has reared its ugly head At first glance, I was in agreement with Languagehat, that these were not metaphors at all but simply two cliches joined at the hip. But reading the phrase in context: International Olympic Committee (IOC) leaders fired a warning shot in the dark at all Olympic sports on Tuesday, telling them that their place in the Summer Games would be reviewed on a regular basis. it is clear that the IOC did not literally fire a shot (in the dark or otherwise) which makes this, then, a metaphor-- something considered as representing or symbolizing another thing. Trying my own hand : She had a few loose screws which made her brain come unhinged. Why don't you go take a long walk off a short pier and go drown your sorrows. He always was a fly-by-night-by-the-seat of his pants operator. Hmmm, this is harder then it looks.

By: rusty

rusty — Wed, 27 Nov 2002 22:00:38 -0800

Well, Secret Life of Gravy, it looks like the foot's on the other hand now, isn't it! Creating your own mixed metaphors is a whole different ball of fish. I use the phrase "a whole different ball of fish" all the time, like whenever I get a chance, and not once has anyone ever pointed out that it fundamentally makes no sense. Speaking of which, fans of mangled language may want to check out this recent letter to The Register, which includes the absolute gem: "Or perhaps the truth is less interesting than the facts?" Keep thinking about it. It makes less and less sense, and yet comes to seem more and more profound. The punchline, of course, is that this twinkling bit of nonsense was penned by Amy Weiss, who works for the RIAA. As Senior VP... of Communications.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Thu, 28 Nov 2002 07:24:59 -0800

Hildago: A mixed metaphor is like a mixed salad; it's got bits of two or more inconsistent images tossed in together in the same passage. "He chewed his cud for a while before erupting in a barrage of fireworks that beat his audience into submission," that sort of thing. "A warning shot in the dark" is perfectly consistent; I'm sure plenty of them have in fact been fired as hostile ships passed in the night. It's not mixed, just unusual; that's what they pay headline writers to do ("Headless Body in Topless Bar").

By: Secret Life of Gravy

Secret Life of Gravy — Fri, 29 Nov 2002 11:23:52 -0800

Rusty, thanks for the laugh-- your "ball of fish" is a whole 'nother keattle of wax. I'm rolfing on the floor laughing my shirt off.