slip of the pen
- noun
- Informal
:
error de escritura
- She laughed when she realized her note contained a slip of the pen that changed the entire meaning.
Examples
-
Everyone has had the experience of noticing a typographical error in a printed text or a slip of the pen in a handwritten one, but few have recognized the tremendous implications of that discovery.
Academic text (1992) -
Again, the copyist may correct what appears to be a grammatical mistake, or may regard something in the original as obviously a mistake, say "a slip of the pen," for reasons of background knowledge or interpretation.
Academic text (2001) -
I accidentally wrote the wrong date on the form because of a slip of the pen.
-
During the report, he mentioned a slip of the pen that altered a crucial detail in the data.
Synonyms
79
1.6
A small mistake made by accident or carelessness
48
2.3
A small mistake in typed or printed text, like a wrong letter
44
5.3
A small wrong action that causes embarrassment or harm to people's trust
30
4.7
A small mistake that someone does not notice
13
3.7
A small careless mistake you make by accident
4
7.7
A small unintentional mistake when speaking, writing, or performing an action
A small mistake made when you press the wrong key
To accidentally leave out a repeated letter or word when copying text
An accidental repeated letter, word, or phrase in writing
Antonyms
How Serious
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a minor mistake in writing' is directly and transparently derivable from combining 'slip' (a minor accidental mistake) with 'pen' (a writing instrument): the phrase literally evokes a mistake produced by the pen. The 'slip of the X' construction is a common, compositional pattern (and parallels like 'slip of the tongue' exist cross-linguistically), so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will readily infer the meaning.
Etymology
The phrase slip of the pen comes from the image of a pen making a quick slip on paper and creating a small wrong mark. So it means 'a small mistake in writing'.