Tropedia

  • Before making a single edit, Tropedia EXPECTS our site policy and manual of style to be followed. Failure to do so may result in deletion of contributions and blocks of users who refuse to learn to do so. Our policies can be reviewed here.
  • All images MUST now have proper attribution, those who neglect to assign at least the "fair use" licensing to an image may have it deleted. All new pages should use the preloadable templates feature on the edit page to add the appropriate basic page markup. Pages that don't do this will be subject to deletion, with or without explanation.
  • All new trope pages will be made with the "Trope Workshop" found on the "Troper Tools" menu and worked on until they have at least three examples. The Trope workshop specific templates can then be removed and it will be regarded as a regular trope page after being moved to the Main namespace. THIS SHOULD BE WORKING NOW, REPORT ANY ISSUES TO Janna2000, SelfCloak or RRabbit42. DON'T MAKE PAGES MANUALLY UNLESS A TEMPLATE IS BROKEN, AND REPORT IT THAT IS THE CASE. PAGES WILL BE DELETED OTHERWISE IF THEY ARE MISSING BASIC MARKUP.

READ MORE

Tropedia
Register
Advertisement
WikEd fancyquotesQuotesBug-silkHeadscratchersIcons-mini-icon extensionPlaying WithUseful NotesMagnifierAnalysisPhoto linkImage LinksHaiku-wide-iconHaikuLaconic

Bob makes a historical/cultural/pop culture reference and Alice thinks he is referring to something entirely different. Bob corrects Alice but this only leads to another correction, which only confuses Alice again. Bob makes another correction and so on and so on.

Just one mistake and this would just a simple misunderstanding, however string together a chain of these and Hilarity Ensues.

Due to the nature of this trope with multiple cultural references in quick succession, some of the allusions may fly over the audience's head. This usually doesn't actually hurt the comedic potential though.

See Who's on First? for this trope dealing solely with people with unfortunately confusing names.

Examples of Chain of Corrections include:


Comedy[]

  • Abbott and Costello's famous "Who's on First?" comedy routine, where Abbott tries identifying the players of a baseball team to Costello, but Costello's constant misinterpretation of the players' names and nicknames as non-responsive answers leads to Abbott constantly invoking the trope ... and leaving Costello even more confused and frustrated!

Fanfiction[]

  • In a funny caption post to this image on DeviantArt, Azula from Avatar: The Last Airbender finds herself one cell away from a man who frustrates her and the security guard to no end!

Random other prisoner: "Look on the bright side! You can't send me adware anymore!"

Azula: "That was E-zula, idiot!"

Random: "Nor dress in weird Afro attire!"

Azula: "That's Shaka-Zula!"

Random: "Or dress like a spider!"

Azula: "Anasazi!"

Random: "Nor kill Cleopatra..."

Azula: "That was an asp!"

Random: "Nor possess Dana!"

Azula: "Aaargh!!! Slammit!!! That was Zuul!!! I'm in Hell, aren't I?"

Random: "Hmm...just don't become a fill-in for Bruce Wayne, okay?"

Azula (frustrated): "THAT WAS AZRAEL!!!"

Guard: "I don't care if it was Frosty the Freakin' Snowman! Keep quiet in there! I'm trying to play Sudoku down here!"

Random: "Cool! Don't let Sudoku come out of your TV!"

Azula: "That's Sadako!!!"

Random: "The city that got destroyed with fire and brimstone in Genesis?"

Azula: "That's Sodom!"

Random: "What's that guy from Iraq got to do with this?"

Azula: "That was Saddam!"

Random: "So damn what???"

Azula: "Exactly!"

Live Action TV[]

Cquote1

 Shawn: "I decided to be and therefore I am." Socrates said that.

Gus: No, that was Descartes.

Shawn: That was the cologne I wore in high school.

Gus: No, that was Drakkar Noir.

Shawn: That was a wine.

Gus: That's pinot noir.

Cquote2
  • The Office has been doing this a lot, for example:
Cquote1

 Michael: I am going to donate to Afghanistanis with AIDS.

Jim: Whoa, I think you mean the Aid to Afghanistan.

Michael: No, I mean Afghanistanis with AIDS.

Phyllis: Afghani.

Michael: What?

Phyllis: Afghani.

Michael: That's a dog.

Pam: No, that's Afghan.

Michael: That's a shawl.

Dwight: Wait, canine AIDS?

Michael: No, humans with AIDS.

Creed: Who has AIDS?

Jim: Guys, the Afghanistanannis.

Michael: Okay, you know what? No, no. AIDS is not funny. Believe me, I have tried.

Cquote2
    • Aaaaand a somewhat shorter one:
Cquote1

 Pam: It's almost time for Ultra-Feast! Where's Kevin?

Michael: What? You wanna eat cat food with Kevin and not go to the hospital?

Oscar: That's Fancy Feast. Ultra-Feast is something they made up so they can pig out together in the name of ceremony.

Michael: What is Oktoberfeast? (sic)

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Willow: (sarcastically) Old Reliable, yeah, that's really a sexy nickname.

Xander: She means you're like a geyser of fun that goes off at regular intervals.

Willow: That's Old Faithful.

Xander: Isn't that the dog that the guy had to shoot...

Willow: That's Old Yeller.

Buffy: Xander, I beg you not to help me.

Cquote2
  • This exchange from Wings:
Cquote1

 Lowell: It's like Dylan said. "Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage, for the times they are a-changing."

Roy: I think you're confusing Bob Dylan with Dylan Thomas.

Lowell: Don't be silly, Roy. Dylan Thomas was the poet laureate of Wales. Bob Dylan was the star of Gilligan's Island.

Roy: No, no, no, that's Bob Denver!

Lowell: No, Bob Denver was the guy who sang "Rocky Mountain High".

Roy: Oh, right.

Cquote2
    • Incidentally, that was actually John Denver.
    • Referenced, oddly enough, in Family Guy.
    • In another episode the main cast correct each other over people who have the words 'ice' in their names; such as musicians and athletes.
  • The Thin Blue Line:
Cquote1

 Goody: I don't want to buy the queen a present, sir, she's an antichrist.

Fouler: I beg your pardon!?

Goody: Oh, no, I mean anarchist. No, no, what's that name for someone who is out of date and does not matter anymore?

Habib: I think you mean an anachronism.

Goody: Yes, that's right, the Queen is an anachronism.

Gladstone: I though that was someone who was scared of spiders.

Fouler: No, no that is an arachnaphobic.

Gladstone: I thought that was someone who was scared of wide open spaces.

Habib: No, that's agoraphobics, they can't handle going outside. Arachnophobics hate spiders.

Fouler: Look, we're talking about the queen.

Goody: Is the Queen scared of spiders?

Gladstone: Well I wouldn't have thought so, but it is starting to look that way.

Goody: Perhaps that is why she is scared to go outside, sir.

  • Ziva, from NCIS, absolutely constantly.
Cquote2
  • Community has a chain of offensive statements that probably qualifies:
Cquote1

 Jeff: I'm saying you're a football player. It's in your blood!

Troy: That's racist.

Jeff: Your soul!

Troy: That's racist.

Jeff: Your eyes?

Troy: That's gay.

Jeff: That's homophobic.

Troy: That's black.

Jeff: That's racist!

Troy: Damn.

Cquote2
  • The Electric Company lived for this. They did numerous sketches like this one, where Rita Moreno and Judy Graubert drove each other nuts:
Cquote1

 Rita: Hey, how do you like my new giggles?

Judy: You mean goggles.

Rita: No, no - that's what someone does for a sore throat - goggles with mouthwash.

Judy: You mean gargles!

Rita: No, that's what the water in the tub does - it gargles down the drain.

Judy: No, you mean gurgles!

Rita: No, gurgles are what we wear to look thinner. Frankly, my gurgle is killing me!

Judy: You mean girdle!

Rita: No! A girdle is a think you cook flapjacks on - and girdle cakes.

Judy: You mean griddle!

Rita: No! A griddle is a tricky question with a funny answer, like 'what has four eyes and sings through its nose'. I know a lot of great griddles.

Judy: You mean RIDDLES!

Rita: No! A riddle is something a worm does - it riddles off the hook!

Judy: You mean WRIGGLES!!

Rita: No, that's what happens when you act silly and you can't stop laughing - you have the wriggles!

Judy: No, you mean GIGGLES!

Rita: Oh well, for goodness' sake, that's what I said!! How do you like my new giggles??

Judy: Oh, they're terrific - I got myself a pair here!

Cquote2
    • And that was just in the first episode...
  • On The Golden Girls, Sophia and Rose attempt to figure out who the president is married to:
Cquote1

 Rose: Well, it doesn't matter anyway, they're not married anymore. Now he's married to Nancy Davis.

Sophia: The chick from All About Eve?

Rose: No, that was Bette Davis.

Sophia: That woman who beat her kids with wire hangers?

Rose: No, you're thinking of Joan Crawford.

Sophia: The fat cop from Highway Patrol?

Rose: That was Broderick Crawford.

Sophia: The president was married to Broderick Crawford?!

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Bartlet: I hear you're thinking about ophthalmology.

Ellie: Oncology.

Bartlet: Why would you want to study people's feet?

Ellie: That's podiatry.

Bartlet: That's children's medicine.

Ellie: Pediatrics.

Bartlet: I thought it was obstetrics.

Ellie: That's pregnant women.

Bartlet: And what's the study of feet?

Ellie: Dad, you're not going to make me laugh.

Bartlet: The only thing you ever had to do to make me happy was come home at the end of the day.

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Wife of Gob: I'm in love with your brother-in-law.

Gob: You're in love with your own brother? The one in the army?

Wife of Gob: No, your sister's husband.

Gob: Michael? Michael....

Wife of Gob: No, that's your sister's brother.

Gob: No, I'M my sister's brother. You're in love with me. Me!

Wife of Gob: I'm in love with Tobias.

Gob: My brother-in-law?

Wife of Gob: I know it can never be, so I'm leaving. I'm enlisting in the army.

Gob: To be with your brother?

Cquote2
Cquote1

 London: Too late, we're gonna get married, buy a big villa, and live in Acapella.

Maddie: People sing A Capella; he lives in Acapulco.

London: That's what my sweater's made out of.

Maddie: That's Alpaca!

Cquote2


Newspaper Comics[]

  • A Sunday strip of Pickles did this once. Two of the main characters did this in order to drive a third character to leave the bench they were sitting on.

Radio[]

  • On Fibber McGee and Molly, the character of Mayor LaTrivia was subjected to these practically Once Per Episode. They'd usually involve him innocently using some figure of speech, which Fibber or Molly (or both) would either take too literally or otherwise misinterpret, sometimes on purpose. LaTrivia's subsequent attempts to clear things up would only create more confusion, making him increasingly flustered and confused and generally reducing him to sputtering, incoherent rage by the time his visit was over.
    • One not involving Mayor LaTrivia, from "Cleaning the Closet":
Cquote1

 Fibber: Remember that spring we were up there, and those people were selling flowers on the street corner? Trailing arthritis, I think they were.

Molly: You don't mean trailing arthritis, you mean trailing arbutus.[1]

Fibber: I do not; Arbutus was a guy in Shakespeare. He's the guy who stabbed Caesar in the toga.

Molly: No, that was Brutus.

Fibber: No, you're thinking of that fairy tale: Puss and Brutus.

Molly: No, you that wasn't Puss and Brutus, and what you mean is arbutus.

Fibber: If that's arbutus, what's arthritis?

Molly: Arthritis is when your joints swell.

Fibber: Well, that's what I say. Any place that sells flowers on every street corner is a swell joint.

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Austen: Now, Adam. Speaking of film versions of Hamlet, remember that one a few years ago with Mel Gibson?

Adam: Was that the one with Tina Turner in it?

Austen: No, you're thinking of Mad Max 3.

Adam: Oh yeah, Beyond Thunderdrome. That was the one where Tina had to be rescued from Ike, because he kept hitting her, till she went...

Austen: No, no, that's What's Love Got To Do With It.

Adam: Mel Gibson was in What's Love Got To Do With It?

Austen: Well, no, I didn't say that ... he wasn't ... He was Phil Spector.

Cquote2
  • Hello Cheeky sometimes did this, but with words instead of references.
Cquote1

 Tim: Look here, Cryer, that's a calumny!

Barry: What is?

Tim: That thing that Nelson stands on in Trafalgar Square.

John: No, no, that's a column.

Tim: No, that's two full stops making love.

Barry: No, that's a colon!

John: No, that's an army officer!

Tim: No, no, that's a colonel! [2]

Barry: ...Isn't that what they find in nuts?

Tim: What?

Barry: Nuts. Nuts!

Tim: And knickers to you, mate!

Cquote2


Web Comics[]

  • This trope is illustrated beautifully in a Penny Arcade strip entitled "Linguaphiles Unite".
    • According to Gabe on the podcasts, most people blame Tycho for those, even though it's his "favorite joke, ever." From the third series of D&D podcasts:
Cquote1

 DM: ... and he has a cataract in his left eye.

Gabe: A boat?

Tycho: That's a catamaran.

Cquote2
Cquote1

 DM: As you look out over the water, you see many corsairs passing, making for Minas Tirith.

Aragorn: What the heck are corsairs? You mean those leopard things that cast magic?

Gimli: You're thinking of coeurls. A corsair is just a kind of dinosaur.

DM: No, you're thinking of ceratosaurs. A corsair is actually just--

Legolas: Didn't you idiots ever play Starcraft? Corsairs are flying air units!

Aragorn: Dang, we don't have any way to fight flying units.

DM: ATTENTION! Corsairs. Are. Sailing. Ships. OKAY?

Legolas: I'm confused. Don't you mean galleons?

Cquote2


Web Original[]

Cquote1

 Doc: I'm a pacifist.

Caboose: You're a thing that babies suck on?

Tucker: No, dude, that's a pedophile.

Church: Tucker, I think he means a pacifier.

Tucker: Oh, yeah, right. Man, I was totally thinking about something else.

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Vegeta: I don't even know where that's from

Krillin: I think that was Tetris

Vegeta: Isn't that what you get when you cut yourself with something rusty?

Goku: Nope, that's rabies.

Gohan: Actually, Dad, you contract rabies when you're bitten by an animal with the disease.

Goku: Silly Gohan, animals don't eat people. People eat animals.

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Adam the Alien: Did you burrow?

Skrufy: What's a barrow?

Adam the Alien: A barrow is a cart, but I asked did you burrow?

Skrufy: I don't own a donkey!

Adam the Alien: You know that a burro is a donkey but you don't know that a barrow is a cart?

Paul: I thought a borough was a place.

Adam the Alien: It is.

Paul: You said it was a donkey!

Adam the Alien: No, that's a burro.

Skrufy: I still don't know what a barrow is.

Adam the Alien: A barrow is a cart.

Paul: Never put the barrow before the burro.

Skrufy: This is making me hungry for Mexican food.

Adam the Alien: That's a burrito.

Cquote2

Western Animation[]

Cquote1

 X-tacle #1: So...who's read Flowers for Algernon?

Nearl: Ken!

X-tacle #2: Oooh, about the kid with all the chains, and the goggles, and at the end he gets killed with a shotgun?

X-tacles #2, #3, #4: Boosh

X-tacle #1: That's "Harrison Bergeron."

X-tacles #2, #3, #4: Hollywood Squares!

X-tacle #1: That's Tom Bergeron.

X-tacle #2: Brother of Menelaus!

X-tacle #1: Damn it, that's Agamemnon!

Cquote2
Cquote1

 Jefferson Twilight: On three we give him the old Rochambeau.

The Alchemist: Rock-paper-scissors?

Dr. Orpheus: What does a general from the American Revolution have to do with this?

Jefferson Twilight: American Revolution? Rochambeau sounds...sounds French to me.

Dr. Orpheus: Yes, the Franco-American forces.

Jefferson Twilight: They fought with Spaghetti-o's and meatballs?

The Alchemist: Why would a company called Franco-American make Italian food?

Cquote2
Cquote1

  I'm sorry, it was Tom Berenger, we were looking for Tom Berenger.

Cquote2
    • also:
Cquote1

 Lois: Okay, one more minute, and then if there are two pink lines...

Peter: Oh god, I hope you're not pregnant, we can't afford another kid. We already got Chris, Stewie, Richie, Joanie, Greg, Marsha, Bobby, Jan, Mike Seaver, Carol Seaver, Boner, Urkel, Mr. Furley...

Brian: Peter those aren't your kids, that's the Nick at Nite lineup.

Peter: Blanka, Zangeif, Chun-Li, Guile, E. Honda...

Brian: That's Street Fighter.

Peter: Red, blue, green...

Brian: Those are colors.

Cquote2


Real Life[]

  • Old joke here - three old men:
Cquote1

 Old man #1: Windy, isn't it?

Old man #2: It's Thursday.

Old man #3: So am I, let's get something to drink.

Cquote2
  • And in the same spirit
Cquote1

 Old man: Look at my new watch!

Young man: What kind is it?

Old man: About three-thirty.

Cquote2
  1. A kind of flower
  2. Pronounced 'curnal'.
Advertisement