Questions tagged [humor]
Questions about humorous expressions, jokes, puns, etc.
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What does this joke between Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra mean?
I have been listening to Dean Martin Pandora radio lately and there is a song medley between Sinatra and Martin. During each song they have little quips back and fourth, and there is one that I don't ...
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Meaning of "it isn't the initial cost, it's the humidity"
I was reading Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis and came across a quote I cannot understand:
But they all felt that it was rather in bad taste for Orville Jones — and he not recognized as one of the wits ...
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What type of wordplay joins two phrases together on a single syllable?
During a South Park episode, Wendy sings a song with a specific type of wordplay in which she ends a sentence and starts a new one with a common word or syllable. This gives the lyrics a double ...
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The Guerrilla Comma
The other day, a car wielding a bumper sticker pulled past me. The sticker said I should:
Love people, prepare them yummy food.
We stopped at a light, the car ahead of me. Taking a closer look, I ...
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How could I reponse if my American friend joked "americans are foolish; we have no idea about geography?" [closed]
Last time my American friend and I were talking about an African country. He happened to know nothing about the country. Then he joked "Americans are foolish; we have no idea about geography?"
I ...
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Is there a word to describe mocking a list by extending it?
For instance, the quote from Douglas Adams:
“In those days spirits were brave, the stakes were high, men were real men, women were real women and small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri were real ...
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What's a the word for people who make fun of themselves?
I don't mean people with low self esteem.
But there are people who feel happy at being able to make other people laugh at their own expense. I remember someone telling me there is a word for them, I ...
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Is saying the Queen grew up in a "council house" a very dry joke?
In this CBC article from before the Brexit, they discuss what view Queen Elizabeth II might have of Brexit, stating,
But that hasn't stopped some from speculating how the Queen would vote. "As an ...
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What is it called when you use the same first consonant in different words - Example follows [duplicate]
I'm going blank here, so forgive me for what should be simple. The search engines weren't helpful. I tried to search.
Example:
The finicky felines finished their food.
I'm drawing a serious blank ...
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A noun to describe an intention not to use humor when not necessary [closed]
I am seeking a noun that would describe a person's attempt to refrain themselves from being "cool" in responding (perhaps to an email message), often contrary to their humorous nature - an intentional ...
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What is this method of joking about a morbid situation called?
What word or phrase could be used to describe a joke about something serious or bad? It isn't meant as humor in the typical sense, but as sort of a brave, different flavor of humor between two friends....
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How to tell someone (in a funny way) that you are aware that you are (too) emotive while talking about an issue?
How would you tell (briefly) the person you are talking with when you are flooded with emotions —in a funny way—, that:
you are aware of these sign, and you find it embarrassing
you don’t take your ...
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Connotation of a sentence in a listening material from TPO
(Here for the original audio source (MP3 file). The part in question begins approximately at 2'18'')
This conversation is an excerpt from one listening material in a TPO (TOEFL Practice Online) test, ...
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Where is the word play in this dialog?
I'm trying to figure out the word play behind this dialog (it is taken from A Bit of Fry and Laurie show - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WaqZpcPEZEY):
Good morning.
Right. Can I help you?
Yes, ...
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Does 'droll' have a negative connotation?
I'd taken droll to mean something like drily amusing, but without any implied negativity.
But I've often heard people say
Very droll!
in response to something that they appear to find mildly amusing ...
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What is a work-appropriate "small" object for a joke? [closed]
Trying to think of a way to make this joke work-appropriate.
"If we store GPS coordinates to a precision of 10 decimal points, we could even measure the size of your [expletive deleted]."
What is ...
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What's the meaning of "I have a soul"?
From the TV series How I Met Your Mother. In episode 9 of season 1, titled: Mary the Paralegal, the following expression I have a soul is used.
What does it mean when someone says: I have a soul?
00:...
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What does "cup and Chaucer" mean?
I've recently come across a phrase unknown to me: "cup and Chaucer". What does it mean?
Obviously it is connected with the popularity and influence of Geoffrey Chaucer as the Father of English ...
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What is the scientific name to humour that is based on surprise [duplicate]
I remember browsing through Wikipedia one day, and coming across an article defining surprise-based humour. The article had a very specific scientific name, which doesn't have the actual word "...
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Phrase for criticism/insults concealed with humor
Passive aggressive people will sometimes veil insulting, critical, derogatory or generally aggressive comments with humor. The patina of humor makes the comment seem like a joke, not to be taken ...
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Does a pun require an explicit reference to the word being punned?
If one is referencing a prior comment in a conversation that uses a term with multiple meanings, using the alternate meaning to make wordplay, would this be considered a pun? (Note: poor software ...
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What is it called when someone uses a slightly absurd specific example of something to be humorous?
For example, "We're competing for attention with teenagers who would rather be playing Angry Birds," or "You need to explain this in a way that your grandmother who thinks the internet works by magic ...
user115753
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What makes 'St-n-c-tt-r' a 'smirking pun'?
This passage comes from Walter Isaacson's “Benjamin Franklin: An American Life.”:
Franklin wrote about a husband who caught his wife in bed with a man
named Stonecutter, tried to cut off the ...
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Meaning of 'It is to the feminine as the hug of a bear is to the scratch of--well;--anything with claws.'
"A man's sense of humor is a barbarous and a cruel thing, Miss Innes,"
he admitted. "It is to the feminine as the hug of a bear is to the
scratch of--well;--anything with claws. Is that you, ...
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What does the phrase "I didn't bring my permits" mean?
I came across this gif. Apparently actor Chris Pratt is cracking some kind of a joke here, but I'm not sure if I get it. He said this line after he had showed off his guns.
Any tips would be ...
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What English homophone corresponds to 'oise salon'?
This is something of a fringe question. I hope it's considered on-topic.
There have been two books published which purport to be French poetry. The joke is that when read aloud, the poetry sounds, ...
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What’s so funny about "You are winner"? [closed]
I came across one slang thing:
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=You%27re%20Winner!
While understand that it is grammatically incorrect and you must say "You are the winner", I don't get ...
user87447
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Better term for “intellectual jokes”
What can you call a joke, pun, or anything funny that likely needs intelligence to get?
All I can come up with is intellectual jokes; is there another word for this? A one-word answer would be great.
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A guy walks into a bar. His buddy laughs and says, "Don't worry, I didn't see it either."
A guy walks into a bar. His buddy laughs and says, "Don't worry, I didn't see it either.
What is the meaning of this joke? What makes it funny? (Is it supposed to be funny?)
I saw this joke in the ...
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Use of "nay" - still current?
I get the sense that the interjection nay is seen as outdated and used only for humorous effect. Is this assumption true, or is it still acceptable in serious writing?
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<Grammar/Style> Ambiguous "it"
I recently stumbled upon this joke employing some grammar:
Q: How can you drop an egg on a concrete floor without cracking it?
A: Any way you want, concrete floors are very hard to crack.
My ...
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Starts with N ends in O.... means Yes [closed]
Just wondering if there is a word (or pair of words) that starts with N and ends with O and actually means Yes (or roughly yes... some sort of synonym). I thought this might have some humorous ...
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First communion, then communism?
On a slightly more serious note, what do you call a kid who goes to his first communion?
Surely not a communist, right?
user22210
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What's "jewishness" supposed to mean?
There is an image at http://www.pinterest.com/pin/160511174191029351/ which goes like this:
I don't quite get the joke... what's "Jewishness" supposed to mean in this context?
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Does the type of play on words in "Some people are immune to good advice" have a name?
On Breaking Bad, Saul Goodman remarks, "Some people are immune to good advice." Similarly, a friend of mine described a weekend as "a celebration of procrastination".
Does word play that juxtaposes ...
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Can "liable" and "likely to" convey opposite connotations?
Liable is often loosely used in colloquial, nonstandard AE for likely: "My favorite horse is liable to win" -- but discriminating use generally applies liable only to what is undesirable: "An ...
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What does this humor mean? [closed]
Why is this caption funny?
"Faster! By God, you will earn that tip yet!"
Source
Since this is about American humor, I'd appreciate an answer from Americans.
user41481
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"...Batman is the personality-shelf where Bruce Wayne stores the crazy-plates..." - is this just a metaphor, or is it something else?
In this article on Cracked.com, I discovered this gem of a phrase:
...Batman is the personality-shelf where Bruce Wayne stores the crazy-plates...
...and I thought it was a fantastic phrase. Then ...
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"Enter the Fairies" after a sudden clatter or crash?
In my family, who originate from Scotalnd, people cry "enter the fairies!" if something has caused a sudden crash, smash or clatter.
I am guessing it comes from a stage direction, such as from ...
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“This video was recorded with a sandwich”
It is a top comment from this youtube video. I'm sure it is a way of expressing sense of humor, but I just can't get it. My guess is that they are just saying the video is just as short as the time it ...
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Where did "You missed a spot" come from?
I have seen this in a few films. I first noticed it in "The Truman Show" when Truman is pulling weeds or something in the yard, and his faux wife says to him "You missed a spot!" while smiling. I've ...
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Where did the phrase "don't spend it all in one store" originate?
I've heard the phrase "don't spend it [money] all in one store" a number of times, virtually always in a joking manner. Where did it originate from and has it always been said as a joke?
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Is the phrase "Take my wife – please!" a paraprosdokian?
I was reading the wiki page about paraprosdokians and I don't understand why the phrase:
Take my wife – please!
is classified as one.
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What does the phrase "never the mane shall tweet" mean?
It has long been known that birds will occasionally build nests in the
manes of horses. The only known solution to this problem is to
sprinkle baker's yeast in the mane, for, as we all know, ...
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Make like a banana
In my area, it's not unusual to hear expressions like
I'm going to make like a banana and split.
...make like a tree and leave.
...make like a baby and head out.
...make like a prom ...
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Most apt word for "sexual humour"
What is the most apt word to describe sexual humour in a movie?
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Curious about the type of humour employed by Twitter's @AntiJokeCat? [closed]
Despite my general disregard for Twitter and its adherents, I very much enjoy AntiJokeCat's brand of humour. His/her gags are funny because they seem to subvert the notion of what a joke is and ...
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What is the first part of a joke called?
How does one refer to the first part of a joke?
The follow up is often referred to as a punchline but I'm unsure how to refer to the first part. Is it a 'joke' or does a 'joke' include the punchline?
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"Analogy is the Delaware of Cognition"
I come across this expression in this public lecture "Analogy as the Core of Cognition" by Douglas Hofstadter. (http://shc.stanford.edu/events/calendar/2006-2-6-douglas-hofstadter-analogy-as-the-core-...
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Intentional double negation
Is there a name for this manner of purposely speaking in double negatives, e.g.
I wouldn't say no to a cup of tea!
I've noticed it as a habit of some people, perhaps often going along with a ...
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