Mondegreen 空耳

soramimi · from English

What is a mondegreen?

A mondegreen is a misheard phrase, especially song lyrics, that produces a new meaning; Japanese calls it soramimi (空耳, empty ear).

The term was coined by Sylvia Wright in 1954 after mishearing a ballad line laid him on the green as Lady Mondegreen. Japanese soramimi deliberately reinterprets foreign lyrics as Japanese phrases, popularised by the TV segment Soramimi Hour. Learners produce mondegreens whenever the brain fills gaps with familiar words.

Examples

Excuse me while I kiss this guy (kiss the sky); Japanese soramimi of foreign songs heard as Japanese phrases; Chinese 空耳 kōng'ěr videos on Bilibili

Kungfucius says: The brain hates silence, so it invents lyrics. Usually worse ones.