mixed metaphor

American  

noun

1. the use in the same expression of two or more metaphors that are incongruous or illogical when combined, as in “The president will put the ship of state on its feet.”

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mixed metaphor British  

noun

1. a combination of incongruous metaphors, as when the Nazi jackboots sing their swan song

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Etymology

Origin of mixed metaphor

First recorded in 1790–1800

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

mixed metaphor

The metallic colors on stage will blur and shine and hypnotize in HD just as well as they did live, and it will feel like luxuriating in a mixed metaphor just as it did live.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 1, 2023

This is something of a mixed metaphor, but I think you get my point.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 28, 2022

This VHS conceit is a bit of a mixed metaphor given that you are playing the game, not watching someone else play it.

From The Verge ● Nov. 24, 2019

He still uses a lot of awkward phrases, such as how he wants to right “this U.S. ship of state of trust” — a classic Sestakian Navy-tinged mixed metaphor.

From Washington Post ● Apr. 2, 2015

In no deliberative body in the world is the mixed metaphor so much in its element as in the British House of Commons.

From The Scrap Book, Volume 1, No. 3 May 1906 by Various