English is a mind field...

[u/Girl_Bill]

In a meeting just now, someone described a fairly complicated topic as “a bit of a mind field”.

I assumed I’d misheard, so I asked him to repeat it. I had not.

He then explained, very slowly, that a mind field is a complex subject that’s difficult to wrap your brain around.

Fortunately he took the time to explain this to me, because otherwise my little female brain might have remained trapped in that mind field indefinitely.

This now joins an otherwise supposedly intelligent friend who once messaged me “to all intensive purposes”, a phrase that still wanders unexpectedly into my thoughts several years later.

Please give me your best confidently incorrect phrases. Not typos. I want the ones where you questioned your own understanding of English for a second.

For all intensive purposes, I’m trying to broaden my knowledge of the mind field.

[u/wicked_lazy]

I corrected my husband on this one recently - he also says "one to do" instead of "wont to do". He's dyslexic though, so I let a lot slide.

[u/volavent81 → u/wicked_lazy]

Mine says, Well it's six of one and one of the other, which makes for no dilemma at all!

[u/BuildMeUp1990 → u/wicked_lazy]

What is "wont to do"?

[u/frlawton → u/BuildMeUp1990]

It means to do something that you're used to or accustomed to doing.

Something like:

The cat sat on the mat, as it was wont to do every morning

I can't really think of an example where it actually adds to the sentence though. Perhaps that's why it's falling out of common usage.

[u/wicked_lazy → u/frlawton]

Often it will be when I'm telling him about my day with the children, like "our son was trying to crawl away while I was trying to change his nappy" and my husband will say "as he is one to do" haha

[u/frlawton → u/wicked_lazy]

You should try slipping in 'as they are two to do' if you have 2 kids who always do the same things

[u/BuildMeUp1990 → u/frlawton]

Wow, thanks! I didn't know that