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Mondegreens are the mishearing of a popular lyric or phrase in a song/poem that lead to a funny outcome. They are by far my favourite as they create so much comedy! I constantly sing the wrong lyrics to songs and don’t find out the correct lyrics until years later.
Take a look at the picture below for an example.
Do you recognise the song in the picture above? Not with those lyrics about cheese I expect. The lyrics are in fact from the song ‘Sweet Dreams’ by the Eurythmics. The real lyrics are:
‘Sweet Dreams are made of this, who am I to disagree.’
NOT
‘Sweet Dreams are made of CHEESE, who am I to DIS A BRIE.’
funny mondegreen examples
As you can see, they are very funny, Shall we take a look at some more funny mondegreens?
actual lyrics – We built this city on rock ‘n’ roll.
mondegreen – We built this city on sausage rolls.
actual lyrics – Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine.
mondegreen – Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tangerine.
actual lyrics – Then I saw her face, now I’m a believer.
mondegreen – Then I saw her face, now I’m gonna leave her.
actual lyrics – Red red wine, stay close to me.
mondegreen – Red red wine, steak, lobster, meat.
actual lyrics – Lucy in the sky with diamonds.
mondegreen – Blue seal in the sky with diamonds.
actual lyrics – Should I give up or should I just keep chasing pavements.
mondegreen – Should I give up or should I just keep chasing penguins.
actual lyrics – here we are now, entertain us, I feel stupid and contagious
mondegreen – here we are now, in containers, avocado a potato
actual lyrics – It doesn’t make a difference if we make it or not.
mondegreen – It doesn’t make a difference if we’re naked it or not.
actual lyrics – That’s me in the corner, that’s me in the spotlight.
mondegreen – Let’s pee in the corner, let’s pee in the spotlight.
actual lyrics – We’re caught in a trap.
mondegreen – We’re caught in a trout.
actual lyrics – I just died in your arms tonight, it must have been something you said.
mondegreen – I just died in your barn tonight, mustard no mayonnaise instead.
actual lyrics – Just let me state for the record.
mondegreen – Just let me staple the vicar.
actual lyrics – I believe in miracles.
mondegreen – I remove umbilicals.
actual lyrics – I like big butts and I cannot lie.
mondegreen – I like big butts in a can of limes.
Have you noticed any slang in these mondegreens? Songs are full of slang and real English pronunciation. I’m specifically referring to contractions. Contractions are shortened words and are often pronounced differently. They are common in real speech and good to know if you want to speak like a native.
Songs are a terrific way to learn English. Click here to see a list of songs and other materials that can help you improve your English.
mondegreen list
Check out these examples. I’d love to hear your own mondegreens If you’ve ever misheard lyrics, comment below.
mondegreen songs
Comedians use Mondegreens in their shows as they can be hilarious! Check out these funny videos.
**BEWARE, CONTAINS HILARIOUS CONTENT **
Aren’t mondegreens just great? If you’ve enjoyed these, I’m pretty sure you’ll also love eggcorns, malapropisms and spoonerisms. They are also very funny and are a fantastic way to learn English. Find out what they are here.
This design is wicked! You obviously know how to keep a reader entertained. Between your wit and your videos, I was almost moved to start my own blog (well, almost…HaHa!) Great job. I really enjoyed what you had to say, and more than that, how you presented it. Too cool!