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You can rest easy, though. So many illiterate people have taken up "bold-faced" in lieu of "bald-faced"/"bare-faced" that it is rapidly becoming perfectly accepted.

This is a very specific linguistic phenomenon, known to usage experts these days as an eggcorn (itself a reference to people using the term eggcorn rather than acorn). There's an entry for bold-faced lie in the Eggcorn Database.

Eggcorns are interesting from a linguistic perspective, because they often involve three mechanisms which reinforce the change: (1) the new word or phrase sounds very similar to the old one, (2) the new word or phrase incorporates new elements that have a certain logical relationship to some meanings of the old word/phrase, and (3) the new components often substitute for archaic words or usage that often only have stuck around in obscure English idioms. (In this case, "bald" and "bold" sound similar, these types of lies often involve a sort of "boldness," and nobody uses the term "bald-faced" anymore outside of that idiom.)

Thus in tiny pieces a language is corrupted.

Meh. "Corruption" in language is a matter of perspective. Language naturally evolves. These types of "corruptions" have often been around for decades or even centuries. If they happen to date back more than a century or two, they're usually accepted as "legitimate English," even if their origin is as screwed up as your example (and often more so). If Shakespeare said it, by definition it's okay.

I'm not saying we shouldn't try to hold to "standards," particularly in formal writing. But at some point these things become a lost cause. (See, for example, the word "decimate," which comes from a Latin practice of reduction by 1/10th, i.e., reducing to 90% of the original strength or size. NOBODY uses the word to mean this anymore -- instead implying a much greater reduction in size, if not complete destruction -- and if you try to imply the original meaning outside of describing Roman army practices, no one would understand your meaning. Outside of specific historical usage, "decimate" simply means something else now.)

And sometimes the people who complain about linguistic "decay" and "corruption" are the worst offenders -- in their zeal to "fix" English and stamp out usages that sound wrong to them, they often end up creating their own stupid errors.

It's one of the reasons English spelling is so screwed up. See here for a few quick examples of common English words where pretentious idiots tried to make English conform to a mistaken "rule" and added silent letters to words for no apparent reason.

TL;DR -- You're right, and careful writers should take heed. But easy on the "corruption" rant, lest you become a greater danger to English than those you criticize.

http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/english/51/hares-breath/

And to make matters worse, for all intensive purposes, most people could care less!

http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/english/260/pass-mustard/

"I watched paper after paper after paper, day after day after day, tow the party line"

Nice post and I agree with your sentiments but...

grr! Quit breaking English. It's TOE the line. Not tow. 'Tow the line' is one of those phrases spread by the very sloppy journalists you complain about who don't fact-check their work.

Toe the line, as in, a runner anxiously awaiting the start of a race, but being VERY careful to put their toe across the starting line, because if they do they will be disqualified.

So to 'toe the line' means to have an internalised sense of official boundaries, what is allowed to be talked about and what is not. To fall into place in a regimented system. To respect the Party and subdue one's inner instincts.

As opposed to to 'tow the line' would mean to haul something behind one... which doesn't really mean anything. A sort of sensible enough eggcorn, sure, if you didn't know what the actual meaning was, but if you're going to complain about the distortion of facts, start with the degradation of language.

http://eggcorns.lascribe.net/english/72/tow/

the first chink in the army

Is that some kind of racist asian joke? ;-)

I believe you're looking for "chink in the armor". Although that is the funniest eggcorn I've seen in a while.

WTF!!

http://serendipity.lascribe.net/images/wtf.png

You think the previous poster was asking the jokes to form a line? As for eggcorns, you got it backwards. To cue means to "signal" or "sign". As in, "cue the director", or in this case, "cue the jokes". Not "make the jokes form a line".

From dictionary.com, American Heritage Dictionary:

tr.v. cued, cuing, cues
1. To give a cue to; signal or prompt.
2. To insert into the sequence of a performance: cued the lights for the monologue scene.
3. To position (an audio or video recording) in readiness for playing: cue up a record on the turntable.

No, the previous poster was correct. It is queue, as in the UK English word for a line. "Cue up" is an eggcorn.

There is no such word as "copywrite", though it's a nice eggcorn.

It amazes me how many computer programmers can't spell. However do you get your code to compile?

GOD can't you do anything without being spoonhead you bonehead user!

Spoonhead? That's one I've never seen before. Maybe I should go add it to the Eggcorn Database...

**Off-topic warning**

Language Log coined a term to refer to this type of (near) sound-alike -- Eggcorns. Every now and again, LL talks about new eggcorns they've discovered in the wild. Most of the time, these things are pretty entertaining in a "giggling at people's linguistic foibles" sort of way (foibles that we're all guilty of at some point, I should add). There's also a website dedicated to cataloging them locate here.

Oh, I don't know, I sort of like it. It's an eggcorn

I think the original poster just made a mistake. He's not the only one.

I love Eggcorns.

"Roe to hoe" looke like a new entry for the Eggcorn database.

If you people can't even write everyday English, let along meet the more stringent requirements imposed by programming languages, then no wonder software sucks so much.

This is a new one for the Eggcorn Database, I think.

Okaaaay.

Lets look at the sentence and context again - for the benefit of the hard of understanding among us (read 'fuckwitted'):

"as well as treaties intended to protect American intellectual property overseas.' Looks like file sharing will finally be erased once and for all. Oh, and this looks like another field day for those who refuse to subsume patent, trademark and copyright law under the heading of 'IP law.'"

And lets substitute the phrase "field day" for "a time of great pleasure and opportunity" and see if it works:

"as well as treaties intended to protect American intellectual property overseas.' Looks like file sharing will finally be erased once and for all. Oh, and this looks like another time of great pleasure and opportunity for those who refuse to subsume patent, trademark and copyright law under the heading of 'IP law.'"

Hmmm. Now that doesn't actually make sense, because the people "refusing to subsume to the heading of IP Law" are in for a difficult period, not a time of great pleasure and opportunity. Still with me? Take a breather if you're confused ...

OK. Let's try my suggestion:

"as well as treaties intended to protect American intellectual property overseas.' Looks like file sharing will finally be erased once and for all. Oh, and this looks like a time of unrestrained attack and harassment for those who refuse to subsume patent, trademark and copyright law under the heading of 'IP law.'"

Oooooooh. That works, because it makes sense.

I'm very tempted to submit this to the Eggcorn database just because of the sheer conviction with which it is used in error. Either you're not a native English speaker, your English teacher was asleep during class, you were asleep during English class or you have a genuine learning difficulty.

Both blogs are from viewers of the trial. As is mine :
http://maxime.ritter.eu.org/proces-de-guillermito- j-y-etais-breve139.html
And also :
http://maxime.ritter.eu.org/du-full-disclosure-et- de-guillermito-breve141.html

And a blog written in english : http://serendipity.lascribe.net/blogologie/2005/01 /rule-of-law-one/ and http://serendipity.lascribe.net/blogologie/2005/01 /rule-of-law-and-of-the-free-market-part-2/

There were about 40 peoples in the public at the trial, most were bloggers, or people from french usenet group fr.comp.securite.virus, where the story took place.

Both blogs are from viewers of the trial. As is mine :
http://maxime.ritter.eu.org/proces-de-guillermito- j-y-etais-breve139.html
And also :
http://maxime.ritter.eu.org/du-full-disclosure-et- de-guillermito-breve141.html

And a blog written in english : http://serendipity.lascribe.net/blogologie/2005/01 /rule-of-law-one/ and http://serendipity.lascribe.net/blogologie/2005/01 /rule-of-law-and-of-the-free-market-part-2/

There were about 40 peoples in the public at the trial, most were bloggers, or people from french usenet group fr.comp.securite.virus, where the story took place.