speaking

I used to think that a Freudian slip was an apron women in the middle ages wore.

Emily

In our seventh grade science class while reading a chapter in our books out loud, when one person was asked to read a paragraph about squids, he said "A squid has ten 'testicles' while an octopus has only 8." He was supposed to say TENTACLES!!! The whole class burst out laughing!

Nina

I used to think that to have an affair meant to have a fight. One day, when my friend and I were at a ski resort, we started fighting and I went off alone to hide from her. Her Dad came over to ask what was wrong and I said "(my friend's name) and I are having an affair!" Her dad seemed a little confused. It was later that my friend told me what an affair REALLY was. Oops.

Anon

When I was 6 (or maybe 7), and on a country walk with my family, I referred to "that shoop".

Well, several geese, but only one goose, therefore several sheep, but only one shoop.

It was perfectly logical to me at the time, and, come to think about it, I might start a campaign to make my version the correct one...

Bandy

I used to believe that pathetic meant ugly. One day when I was sick, my mom said that I looked pathetic and asked if I needed help. I got really mad at her and said that it was mean of her to call me ugly. She just was like "what?" Then I said "Pathetic means ugly" she started laughing and wouldnt let me live it down.

pathetic gal

Me and my friend asked her little brother if he knew was gay meant, and he said "yeah, it means like happy."
Hahaha.
It was cute.

Anon

When people used the word "stationary" to mean staying still, I thought they were talking about the stuff you write with.

Anon

I always thought a Voo Doo doll was a Doo Doo Doll. Thanks to a very embarrasing moment of voicing this idea, I learned otherwise.

Trish

When I was little I couldn't pronounce phonogragph. It always came out pornogragh

Chester

As a child, I had a hard time understanding why you had to give the store clerk "tacks" with the money. I also thought it was unfair that "miners" could not buy beer.

Jack

Until about a year ago I thought the word "misled" was pronounced like "mistle-d" (as in 'mistletoe'). It was the past tense of the verb "to misle". I am not sure how the lightning of truth finally struck and I realized it was mis-LED.

Anon

When my big sister was a junior high school cheerleader, I would hear her practice a cheer that said:

Send them to their doom-doom-doom-doom-doom-doom!
Boob-boom-boom-boom-boom-boom!

I was unfamiliar with the word "doom" at the time, so the nearest word I could hear was "dune". I really wondered why the cheer was calling for sending someone to a sand dune.

Kimberley

When my youngest sister was a toddler, my grandmother and I were watching her play. My grandmother said, "That Jodi is priceless, isn't she?" I didn't know what priceless meant. I thought my grandmother was saying Jodi wasn't worth anything.

By the way, when I read others people's beliefs, I laugh so hard, I have to be careful not to cry over my keyboard and get it wet!

Vicki J.

I also had trouble hearing and still do but anyways around 4 or 5 I always thought Wind Sheild Wipers was pronounced Win sheer wipers, K-Mart was Kane Mart, and Mix 95.1 (a local radio station) was Nix 95.1. It took untill about I was 7 or so to find out what the real names were.

Red #1 PA

I mix up the words impotent and incomptent. Or at least, I used to. This was a conversation, right after mid-terms, while walking home with a male friend. it went something like this

me : what'd you get on your mid-terms?
him : needs improvment for everything, exacept in Fasion. The teachers hate me because Im incompotent.
me : why would they know you cant get a boner?

lis

When I was about 10 I first came across this work "fuck" and had no idea what it meant, just that it had something to do with love. So, when we were doing a story in class in which a boy and girl meet, I told my friends afterwards, "I bet they'll fuck."...meaning, "I bet they'll fall in love and marry."

Bill The Butcher

For forty years my family has reminded me about Christmas when I was five years old. A relative who traveled extensively brought blue jeans from Paris as a gift for me. I tried them on, and the family quickly made a big deal of my 'spiffy European pants'. I soon announced to the family that I was wearing my "new spiffy I'm-a-peeing pants".

Phil P.

I used to think "understood" meant you didn't understand, because "under" means down. My mom would scold me and say, "Am I understood?" and I'd sheepishly reply "no", which got me 5 minutes in the corner every time for being a "smartmouth". One day, I heard someone use "understand" and "understood" in the same sentence, and it clicked.

Jamie

i used to believe that when people said "pardon me" that they were actually saying "part of me". i could never figure out what that was supposed to mean.

♥

I used to believe the word(s?) 'make-believe' was supposed to be 'maple leaf'. I always said 'I watched my favorite cartoon today. But its just a maple leaf story'.

Kristina