Stop saying "carrot and stick." Just stop

[Kimstu]

@Mangetout

The odd thing is that there seems to be considerable etymological scorn poured upon the phrase ‘carrot on a stick’ - it seems that for some people, it won’t be enough to declare that it arose later than, or as a derivative of, ‘carrot and stick’ (either of which may or may not be true) - no, they want the phrase ‘carrot on a stick’ simply not to exist.

That does sound odd. Now I’m curious: do you have a cite? Who are these people who are trying to claim that the “carrot dangling from a stick” interpretation simply does not exist? I don’t think I see any of them in this thread.

[Mangetout]

No, I didn’t mean to imply that anyone here was of that ilk.

[url=“http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/carrot.html”]here is an article where you can get a hint of the writer’s annoyance (unless I’m just imagining it)

[Mangetout]

Lixed fink

[Mangetout]

And from here:

My favorite eggcorn, though, is either carrot on a stick or carrot and stick. Which one is right? Nobody knows: Both versions are suggested in the Oxford English Dictionary’s citations, but neither is endorsed as definitive. The carrot-on-a-stick crowd, who say the treat is suspended forever in front of the foolish donkey, cite their uncle’s mule or “Little Rascals” episodes as evidence. Those who think it’s “carrot and stick,” a combination of reward and threat, scoff at this cartoonish image. And by now, both versions are so entrenched that even a definitive source wouldn’t dislodge the pretender.

[sup](graping for emphasis mine)[/sup]

[AncientHumanoid]

How about a Jalepeño on a steek?

[saoirse]

Maybe there’s a second stick.

[gigi]

It should be “the carrot or the stick”, IOW are you going to tempt them to do the right thing or whip their butt into doing it. Funny you should mention a carrot on a stick, though, as I remember a cartoon of a donkey with a straw hat on, with a carrot dangling off a stick forever in front of him, and a human behind him brandishing a stick.