Word
pun
US/ˈpən/
UK/pˈʌn/
Definitions
01a play on words
n. a joke that uses a word with two meanings, or two words that sound the same, to be funny.
n. a humorous use of a word or phrase that has several meanings, or that sounds like another word with a different meaning.
“The baker's joke about needing more dough was a clever pun.”
“While some find puns to be the lowest form of wit, others appreciate the linguistic dexterity required to construct a truly seamless play on words.”
Synonyms
02to make a wordplay joke
v. to make a joke using words that sound the same.
v. to make a pun or to use wordplay for humorous effect. Intransitive use.
“He couldn't help but pun about the rainy weather during the garden party.”
“The playwright was known to pun incessantly, often weaving complex linguistic traps into the dialogue of his most comedic characters.”
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English ponnen, ponen, punen, from Old English punian, pūnian (“to pound, beat, bray, bruise, crush, grind”), from Proto-Germanic *punōną (“to break to pieces, pulverize”). See pound. As a kind of word play, from the notion of "beating" the words into place.
From the McCune-Reischauer romanization of Korean 분 (bun), from Chinese 分 (“fen”).
From Hindi [Term?].
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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