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pun |
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pun, use of words, usually humorous, based on (a) the several meanings of one word, (b) a similarity of meaning between words that are pronounced the same, or (c) the difference in meanings between two words pronounced the same and spelled somewhat similarly, e.g., Thomas Hood's "They went and told the sexton and the sexton tolled the bell." Puns have also been used seriously, as in the Bible, Mat. 16.18: "Thou art Peter [Gr. Petros], and upon this rock [Gr. petra] I will build my church." pun the use of words or phrases to exploit ambiguities and innuendoes in their meaning, usually for humorous effect; a play on words. An example is: "Ben Battle was a soldier bold, And used to war's alarms: But a cannonball took off his legs, So he laid down his arms." (Thomas Hood) How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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Paronomasia being one of my weaknesses, I prefer "dinosoar," but the real flaw lies in the absence of possession. Venice is Venus by paronomasia, and Venus, whose beauty was born of the sea, is also a metaphor for Venice. Rosten's humor depends on comic dialect, the solecism, the pun, the malapropism, the glib quip, slang, genteelisms, oxymorons, metathesis, litotes, synecdoche, polyptoton, mimesis, paronomasia, metonymy, and the "malaprintism," as he develops the mock heroic situation comedy of his adult ESL students. |
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