# Is it possible to talk about oxymorons without being bombarded with all the joke ones
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [February 15, 2007, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323 "2007-02-15T07:52:06Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@blinkingblinking](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blinkingblinking)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/1 "2007-02-15T07:52:06Z")
And no I do not like calling them oxymora.
I tried to teach about oxymorons, when I was teaching in Japan.
The other teachers just bombarded me with the ‘joke’ oxymorons like ‘Microsoft works’ and ‘airline food’. I never actually found these funny.
I just wanted a list of them. I like ones like
-deafening silence
-cruel kindness
-mindless thinking
which I think say something interesting.
---
### Author:  [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/2 "2007-02-15T08:22:02Z")
No. It is impossible.
Case in point: most of those joke ones aren’t actually oxymorons! They’re “contradictions in terms”. An oxymoron are two terms whose meanings are different/opposite in the context of the sentence. So ‘jumbo shrimp’ isn’t one because “shrimp” in this context isn’t being used as an adjective to mean “small”. And ‘pretty ugly’ isn’t one because “pretty” doesn’t mean “beautiful” in this context.
Also, neither of those can be considered oxymorons because the juxtaposition isn’t intentional for literary effect. Gah! It annoys me to no end to hear people say “heh heh: military intelligence is an oxymoron, you know.”
(As a converse rule to the one you propose: the really popular false oxymorons can’t be uttered without someone in the crowd shouting “Hey! That’s an oxymoron!”)
And when people call non-linguistic objects “oxymorons,” that really frosts my pumpkin (e.g. “The character of Hamlet is an oxymoron because he behaves so differently at different times.”)
And as further proof that it’s impossible to discuss them without citing all the bad ones, here’s [wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxymoron)’s list of fake ones:
civil libertarian
anecdotal evidence
inductive logic
Larger half
Pretty ugly
wicked nice
deafening silence
Jumbo shrimp
---
### Author:  [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/3 "2007-02-15T13:05:17Z")
[QUOTE=Randy Seltzer]
No. It is impossible.
Case in point: most of those joke ones aren’t actually oxymorons! They’re “contradictions in terms”.
[/QUOTE]
No, they’re not.
---
### Author:  [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/4 "2007-02-15T14:00:09Z")
Sorry, nothing to add other than:
Justice Scalia
---
### Author:  [@yoyodyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yoyodyne)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/5 "2007-02-15T14:28:50Z")
[QUOTE=Ludovic]
No, they’re not.
[/QUOTE]
No argument there.
---
### Author:  [@Polycarp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Polycarp)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/6 "2007-02-15T14:53:30Z")
One of the more abstruse (but funny IMO) of the “little moron” jokes popular when I was a kid:
The little moron fell into a vat of perchlorate bleach, which of course removes yellowing, etc., by intense oxidizing.
Thanks to the strong bleaching effect, he came out intensely bright. But for the same reason he was, of course, an oxymoron.
---
### Author:  [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/7 "2007-02-15T14:55:39Z")
Man, if that’s the kinda joke you and your friends were telling, you must have had a wierd childhood, **poly**! 😃
---
### Author:  [@Sunrazor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunrazor)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/8 "2007-02-15T15:01:09Z")
OK, Randy, you give a long list of terms that aren’t really oxymorons. How 'bout a list of what you define as oxymorons?
---
### Author:  [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/9 "2007-02-15T18:48:18Z")
[QUOTE=Ludovic]
No, they’re not.
[/QUOTE]
Is this the right room for an argument?
-Monty Python
> [@Sunrazor](#):
>
> OK, Randy, you give a long list of terms that aren’t really oxymorons. How 'bout a list of what you define as oxymorons?
IANA poet, but Shakespeare was. Here are some oldies-but-goodies:
tragical mirth (MSND)
Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health (R&J)
sweet sorrow (R&J)
cruel kindness (Ham)
dearest enemy (HIV)
fearful bravery (JC)
pleasing punishment (CoE)
Of course, context is important for determination of oxymorons, and I’m not providing context. So you’ll have to trust me on that count. People were much more enthralled by the idea of oxymoron in Elizabethan times, so their use was much more common.
---
### Author:  [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/10 "2007-02-15T19:16:53Z")
Here are a few more contemporary ones:
living dead
bittersweet
tough love
Hell’s Angels
man-child
cold comfort (although this may be Shakespeare too …)
---
### Author:  [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/11 "2007-02-15T19:22:29Z")
The classic joke oxymoron is “military intelligence”, which is often given as an example of an oxymoron. No, it’s an example of a joke. :rolleyes:
---
### Author:  [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)
#### Post date: [February 15, 2007, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/12 "2007-02-15T20:25:32Z")
No, it’s not possible, especially here, because there are always some wiseasses.
---
### Author:  [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/13 "2007-02-16T03:11:42Z")
Jumbo shrimp?
---
### Author:  [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/14 "2007-02-16T04:30:50Z")
What do you want to _say_ about oxymorons, anyway? It’s not a topic that really requires a lot of debate.
“Oxymoron analysis”, there’s one for you.
---
### Author:  [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/15 "2007-02-16T07:16:11Z")
[QUOTE=Frostillicus]
Jumbo shrimp?
[/QUOTE]
“_Fresh Frozen_ Jumbo Shrimp” But “jumbo shrimp” is kind of weak as \*\*Randy Seltzer \*\*pointed out.
---
### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 10:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/16 "2007-02-16T10:06:41Z")
Bittersweet is a bit weak as well; things can genuinely be bitter and sweet at the same time; the one doesn’t negate the other.
---
### Author:  [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/17 "2007-02-16T11:27:50Z")
As a figure of speech, I think the oxymoron is pretty ugly, and anyone who uses one is a little big for his boots.
---
### Author:  [@Sublight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sublight)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 11:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/18 "2007-02-16T11:35:52Z")
How about “Miracle of Nature”?
I thought a miracle is something that is impossible in nature and can only happen through divine intervention.
---
### Author:  [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/19 "2007-02-16T11:49:10Z")
A contradictory oxymoron is a pleonasm. 🙂
Or perhaps a tautology…
---
### Author:  [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)
#### Post date: [February 16, 2007, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323/20 "2007-02-16T13:39:23Z")
[QUOTE=DrDeth]
“_Fresh Frozen_ Jumbo Shrimp” But “jumbo shrimp” is kind of weak as \*\*Randy Seltzer \*\*pointed out.
[/QUOTE]
I hear Fresh Frozen Jumbo Shrimp go well with Very Young Small Early Peas. Actually, come to think of it, now I’m getting hungry…
[Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-it-possible-to-talk-about-oxymorons-without-being-bombarded-with-all-the-joke-ones/392323.md?page=2)