These purposes are not intensive

Have you ever misheard or misinterpreted a common phrase? Maybe “tow the line” instead of “toe the line,” or “sir name” as opposed to “surname”? Well, you’re not alone. These misinterpretations are known as “eggcorns,” which, you guessed it, comes from the mishearing of the word “acorn.” A relatively common eggcorn we’re addressing this week is “for all intensive purposes,” which is actually “for all intents and purposes.”

A screenshot of a message from Stylebot on Slack that reads: "The phrase is "for all intents and purposes," not "for all intensive purposes": "Her family knew that the postponement of the wedding was, for all intents and purposes, a cancellation.""

What’s an eggcorn you’ve used before? “Per say” instead of “per se,” perhaps?

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