Understanding American Humor – Part 1

Understanding American Humor – Part 1: Puns –

Understanding what people think is funny—and why—is difficult in any language. In fact, one sure sign that you are developing fluency in your second language is when you realize you are able to appreciate its humor and even laugh along with others. That is an amazing accomplishment!

But it doesn’t happen without some focused attention.

In this article, we will look at one key building block of American humor: puns. This building block could be considered fundamental to the English language in general, but for our purposes we’ll focus on explanations and examples related to American culture. The goal is to help you laugh along with your American friends—and maybe even to tell some jokes yourself!

Building Block Number 1: The Humor of Puns

You may not be familiar with the word pun, but it’s a great basic concept for understanding what makes Americans laugh. Here’s how it works:

A pun is a kind of word game: playing with language. Puns are considered funny (most of the time) because they bring surprising or unexpected meanings to a situation. How do they do this?

Type 1 Example: A Word or Phrase with Two Different Meanings

Take a look at this short, punny question and answer:

“Why is an empty purse always the same? Because there is never any change in it!”

What’s the joke? Well, in this pun, the word “change” has two meanings:

1. coins and small bills
2. alteration or difference

The joke is funny because it brings together these two ideas: 1) an empty purse has no ‘change’ –no coins or small bills; and 2) an empty purse has ‘no change’ — it’s never different, because it was, is, and will continue to be empty.  Does that make sense?

And does it make you laugh, or at least smile a little? 

Type 2 Example: Two words or Phrases that Sound the Same

For the second type of pun, you will probably need to read the joke out loud in order to understand it. Because the humor depends on things that sound similar, it often won’t make sense when you read it silently.  To see what I mean, take a look at this example:

What do you call a fish with no eyes?  “FSH.”

If that joke doesn’t make sense, are you sure that you read it out loud?  Try again: “What do you call a fish with no eyes?”  What if ‘eyes’ doesn’t mean what you think it means?

The humor here is based on two things that sound the same but are quite different: “eyes” and “I’s” (that is, the plural of the alphabet letter ‘I’).

When you hear this sentence, you likely think the meaning is “What is the name of a fish with no eyes?” because this makes the most logical sense. However, the joke-maker is actually asking you, “How do you say FISH with no I’s?”  As we now know, the correct (and funny) answer is “FSH”– the word FISH spelled with no I’s.

Did that one make you smile?  Well, read on for some additional examples!

More punning jokes

Now that you’ve seen how puns work, try to understand some of the following. Which ones are Type 1 puns and which are Type 2? And which ones do you think are funny?

After thinking about the meaning, click the button below for an explanation.

If you found some puns you like, try sharing them with a friend! Also if you have questions or additional puns, feel free to post them below.