Christmas Songs: 11 misheard Christmas lyrics named - and what the songs actually say

Despite the countless times we’ve heard Christmas staples over the years, their lyrics still manage to leave room for the occasional mondegreen.

A mondegreen, you may ask? It's a misheard or misinterpreted lyric that gives a song a whole new, often humorous, meaning. The term was coined by American writer Sylvia Wright in a 1954 essay for Harper's Magazine. She described how, as a child, she misheard a line from the Scottish ballad 'The Bonny Earl of Murray.' 

The actual lyric was 'They hae slain the Earl o' Moray, and laid him on the green,' but Wright misheard it as 'They hae slain the Earl o' Moray, and Lady Mondegreen.' 

This misunderstanding gave birth to the term, which has since been used to describe any amusing or puzzling misinterpretation of song lyrics or phrases. 

While Peter Kay may have brought the idea to the stage with his stand up routine, we’ve decided to have a dig around the internet to find 11 Christmas songs with lyrics that have been misheard. 

Were you confused though by any of the lyrics on our list, or have you your own mondegreen you’d like to share?

1) All I Want For Christmas

Actual lyric: "I just want you for my own, more than you could ever know." / Misheard as: "I just want a four-mile home, more than you could ever know."

2) Deck The Halls

Actual lyric: "Deck the halls with boughs of holly." / Misheard as: "Deck the halls with Buddy Holly."

3) Fairytale of New York

Actual lyric: "I kept them with me, babe." / Misheard as: "I come from Whitley Bay."

4) Feliz Navidad

Actual lyric: "Feliz Navidad." / Misheard as: "Police got me down."

5) Jingle Bell Rock

Actual lyric: "What a bright time, it's the right time to rock the night away." / Misheard as: "What a fried time, it's the right time to rock the night away."

6) Jingle Bells

Actual lyric: "Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one-horse open sleigh." / Misheard as: "Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one-horse soap and sleigh."

7) Last Christmas

Actual lyric: "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart." / Misheard as: "Last Christmas, I gave you my arm."

8) Merry Christmas Everyone

Actual lyric: "Snow is falling all around me." / Misheard as: "Snow is falling, oil around me."

9) Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Actual lyric: "All of the other reindeer used to laugh and call him names." / Misheard as: "Olive, the other reindeer, used to laugh and call him names."

10) Silent Night

Actual lyric: "Round yon virgin, mother and child." / Misheard as: "Round John Virgin, mother and child."

11) Winter Wonderland

Actual lyric: "Later on, we'll conspire, as we dream by the fire." / Misheard as: "Later on, we'll perspire, as we dream by the fire."