Fixed word combinations and their modifications are frequently used by journalists in press releases of a political and/or social profile. Analyzing the source material gathered from “Gazeta Wyborcza” in 2001, I found many lexical variants of phrasemes and proverbs.The most interesting modifications appeared in the headlines. This article describes a few such examples.Fixed word combinations make it easier for senders of political-social announcements to express their thoughts indirectly. They can be used to convey irony, mockery, or aversion towards a person or the subject of the statement in a veiled way. The proper understanding (i.e., in accordance with the sender’s intentions) of such a constructed announcement often requires some inte...