Three Languages, Three Ways to Make a Bad Joke

One of the things I love about learning languages is discovering how much fun you can have with words.

A pun is a joke that plays with words that have similar sounds, different meanings, or more than one meaning.

Sometimes the difference between two words is just one tiny sound, but the meaning changes completely.

And honestly, I love making terrible jokes with them.

Japanese even has a name for this kind of wordplay: ダジャレ (dajare).

For example:

布団が吹っ飛んだ！
Futon ga futtonda!
“The futon flew away!”

Japanese also has words that sound the same but have different meanings:

English has plenty of puns too.

One classic is:

Why was six afraid of seven?
Because seven ate nine!

Here, eight and ate sound the same.

Spanish has them too!

For example:

¿Qué le dijo un pez a otro pez?
Nada.

Because nada can mean “nothing” and also comes from the verb nadar, “to swim.”

I think this is one of the funniest parts of knowing three languages.

The jokes don't always translate, but the wordplay exists everywhere.

Do you know any other funny puns? Leave them in the comments, or come share them with me in my Free Talk lesson!

I’d love to hear your favorites!

Spanisch

Native

Englisch

Near-Native

Japanisch

Daily conversation