LANGUAGE IS A funny thing.
You say one thing, but you mean another. These are the common misconceptions that the English language has tricked us into saying…
1. A pencil’s lead
Got a pencil to hand? Well, it’s not the “lead” in it that’s blunt – it’s a mixture of graphite and clay.
2. Your funny bone
It’s not a bone at all, actually. It’s a nerve – the ulnar nerve, to be precise.
3. A koala bear isn’t
It’s not a bear, it’s a marsupial. They are not related closely to the bear family. They’re mostly called plain old “koalas” in their native Australia.
4. The English horn
The English horn neither originated in England nor classifies as a horn. It comes from the area of Europe now called Poland and it’s in the oboe family of instruments.
5. No one dials a number
The phrase “dialling” a telephone number comes from old rotary phones. You iPhone definitely isn’t a rotary, and yet we all still refer to “dialling” numbers. We’re wrong.
6. Tin foil and tin cans
Tin foil isn’t made of tin, it’s made from aluminium. Tin cans aren’t made from tin either. They’re actually made from steel, but plated in a thin layer of tin. Originally both were all tin, which is where the confusion arose.
7. Sticks of what?
A stick of chalk is actually made of gypsum, not chalk. Mind blown.
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