Misheard lyrics (also called mondegreens) occur when people misunderstand the lyrics in a song. These are NOT intentional rephrasing of lyrics, which is called parody.
For more information about the misheard lyrics available on this site, please read our FAQ.
This page contains a list of the songs that have stories about their misheard lyrics submitted.
Song names are sorted by first letter, excluding A and The. This is sorted by song title only, not
by song title and performer. So if two different performers preformed the same song, you'll see
misheard lyrics for both on the same page (provided the song title was spelt the same both times, and
misheard lyrics have been submitted for both!).
Little Sparrow album at Amazon.com
One step up on the postman's ladder.
One step up on the boss man's ladder.
The Story: I wondered why a postman might need a ladder in this song! I assumed he was mailing to a huge skyscraper of an office building. - Submitted by: pickle*
Working 5 to 9
Working 9 to 5
The Story: I heard this in a Squarespace commercial as of today where they reverse the hours to say "5 to 9", so I am submitting this here. - Submitted by: Cody Finke
Loctive came from everywhere
Drove shadows around the room.
Light that came from everywhere
Drove shadows around the room.
The Story: My friend and I listened to the song 4 times to find out what it meant. A few days later, we finally realized that Dolly's got an accent. So she made 'light that' sound like 'loctive'. Let's just say we were a bit confused. - Submitted by: Amber
Messing up my mind, and filling out my census.
you're messing up my mind, and filling up my senses.
The Story: It actually makes sense - Submitted by: 80sguy
And Daria will always love you
And I will always love you
The Story: This was originally recorded by Dolly Parton, later famously recorded by Whitney Houston for the film The Bodyguard. - Submitted by: Cody Finke
Olean, Olean, Olean, Olean
Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene
The Story: I could have sworn she said “Olean”! - Submitted by: Cody Finke
Giddy up Charlie horse don't take a pill.
Giddy up rocky horse down to the mill.
The Story: My sister and I listened to this record a lot, she said I was wrong about the lyrics and bet her house on it! I bet my van. She won. But she was a sweetheart and didn't take my van. - Submitted by: Iceni
Jerking for a ride
Working 9 to 5
The Story: I was waiting for a taxi to let me in when i was listening to this CD. I knew I was listening to 9 to 5 but my mind was on to get a ride back home. So when listening I kept hearing jerking for a ride instead of 9 to 5!! - Submitted by: Bella
Eatin' grits and gravy and country ham, Go to church on Sunday, with dinner on at Gram's
Eatin' grits and gravy and country ham, Go to church on Sunday, with dinner on the ground
The Story: I'm a Catholic from New York, and had never heard of "dinner on the ground" after church. For over 30 years, I thought she was talking about going on to her Grandma's for Sunday dinner after church. And "Gram's" does rhyme with "ham". - Submitted by: Dawn
Kukla, Fran and Ollie are having a party.
Two doors down they're laughing and drinkin', and having a party.
The Story: Although it didn't seem to make sense as a lyric, I used to sing this along with the radio until my daughter got older. When she asked me not to sing along if her friends were in the car, I asked why. She told me. I had to get my wife to confirm that my lyrics were incorrect. Alas, I now only sing along when I'm alone. And when this song comes on the classic country station, I still use the 'Kukla' lyric. I guess PBS had a bigger influence on me when I was a kid than I thought. - Submitted by: Floyd
New entries in this section are currently reviewed by Brian Kelly. Previous editors (if any) are listed on the editors page.
