Sections: 01: Introduction. Contributing to the FAQ. Netiquette.
02: What is ... ? Definitions.
03: History of the Pun.
04: Examples of Puns.
05: Punitive Literary References and Works.
06: Additional Information.
07: Miscellany.
08: Related World Wide Web Sites.
09: Credits.
01.01Q: A Four Word?
A: Puns Are Great Fun!
01.02Q: What is this document?
A: This is the unofficial FAQ (Frequently Askewed Questions)
listing of the alt.humor.puns UseNet newsgroup. It is
intended to be a reference to the most commonly asked
questions and basic information about the Art of the Pun.
01.03Q: How is this document made available?
A: This html address of this FAQ will be posted periodically to
the alt.humor.puns Usenet newsgroup. The address is also
located in numerous search engines on the Weird Wide Web.
01.04Q: Who maintains this list?
A: This list is currently authored and maintained by Mark Samwick.
You can email me by clicking here. Checks, money orders
and/or other negotiable securities can be sent to me at
P.U.N.S., Postal Box 3231, Wescosville PA 18106, but it is
not known why someone might want to do that.
01.05Q: Where does all this information come from?
A: The questions and answers are true, but the names and places
have been changed to protect the indecent. Examples of puns
come from various books and publications, the alt.humor.puns
Usenet newsgroup, word of mouth and life in general.
01.06Q: How can I submit new contributions or corrections to the FAQ?
A: New contributions, suggestions and corrections should be mailed
to me. If you are submitting a correction you must provide
both the old and suggested new text -- messages to the effect
of "this is wrong, fix it" are interesting, but will not prove
terribly helpful.
If you are a member of a Psychic Hotline, and you foresee an
error on this FAQ that I have yet to actually make, please
keep your comments to yourself, as I do not appreciate help
from site seers.
01.07Q: Are there any restrictions on the distribution of this FAQ?
A: You may freely distribute this document for non-commercial
purposes as long as the contents remain unchanged (including
credits) and you do not gain any direct profits from the
distribution. This document is copyrighted by Mark Samwick.
01.08Q: Are there any guidelines regarding postings on this newsgroup?
A: The standard UseNet guidelines apply to this newsgroup.
Explaining these guidelines in detail requires a FAQ of its
own. If you are not familiar with standard network etiquette,
you should review the documents posted regularly in the
news.announce.newuser newsgroup.
A quick summary is:
* Never forget that the person on the other side is most
likely going to be human;
* Be cowful what you utter about others;
* Brevity;
* Your postings reflect upon you, so be proud of them;
* Use descriptive message titles;
* Think about your audience;
* Use mail, don't post a public follow-up unless you
think it might be of value to many;
* Read all follow-ups and don't repeat what has already been
said by reading follow-ups;
* Double-check follow-up newsgroups and distributions;
* Be careful about copyrights and licenses;
* Cite appropriate references and credits;
* When summarizing, summarize;
* Don't overdo signatures;
* Limit line length and avoid using control characters;
* Identify any financial interests related to your posting.
02.01Q: What is a Pun?
A: In Italian, 'puntiglio' means "a fine point," hence a verbal
quibble, and is most likely the source of the English
"punctilious." There developed in late 17th- and early 18th-
century England a short-lived, fanciful word "pundigrion,"
which indeed was a term for what we now know as a pun. Since
snappy monosyllables produced by breaking off pieces of longer
words were all the rage back then, it is widely thought that
this is how and where the word "pun" was created.
A pun is defined by Webster as "the humorous use of a word, or
of words which are formed or sounded alike but have different
meanings, in such a way as to play on two or more of the
possible applications; a play on words."
In describing the various forms of verbal humor, The New
Encyclopaedia Britannica refers to a pun as "two disparate
strings of thought tied together by an acoustic knot." That
analogy strikes a very pleasant cord!
In France, paronomasia is referred to as jeu de mots.
That has a Nice ring to it, n'est-ce pas?
02.02Q: What is paronomasia?
A: The act or practice of punning. And as every ecclesiastical
dean knows so well, "practice make prefect."
02.03Q: Why do people groan when a pun is told?
A: A pun is often considered obvious humor, since
the person relating it is merely balancing the humor in it on a twist
of a word's meaning or sound. Children love this type of obvious
humor and can laugh at it without reproachments. Adults, on
the other hand, are filled with what the early Romans referred
to as 'punus envy' (a term derived from the Latin "epunibus
unim," loosely translated as "why think of that didn't I?"). It
is this envy in adults that subconsciously causes them to
groan upon hearing a pun. As man evolves, it can only be hoped
that he will eventually learn to react more like a child and
less like a groan-up!
02.04Q: Why do folks feel the urge to apologize when they hear their
own bodies making pun-like sounds?
A: Much like flatulence, puns have developed into a socially-
unacceptable utterance. Just look at these recent media
examples:
"'The Amazing Grace' star believes 'that it became chic to make
fun of' religion in Hollywood, and she thinks her NBC series
can show spirituality as 'plus and not some terrible - forgive
the pun - cross to bear.'"
Mark Dawidziak reporting in the Beacon Journal, 3/21/95
Quoting TV actress Patty Duke
"Making Munoz the focus, said Malacy Grange, a community-health
nurse at the Multnomah County HIV Health Services Center in
Portland, could help 'normalize' HIV disease, just as the movie
'Philadelphia' and Magic Johnson's disclosure of his HIV-
positive status helped to elevate public awareness about HIV
and AIDS. 'It shows him leading a normal and active life --
not as a victim or a pariah,' Grange said, pointing out that,
despite progress, gay people still frequently face
discrimination. 'It's very positive, no pun intended.'"
Cristine Gonzalez reporting in The Oregonian, 2/23/95
Discussing a Nike ad featuring runner Ric Munoz, who has AIDS
"... one in three Americans is overweight, according to the
latest studies. Health literacy is far better than it used
to be, and there's an almost insatiable appetite, if you'll
forgive the pun, for this information."
Christine Russell reporting in the Washington Post, 1/31/95
Quoting Anne Thomas, Associate Director for Communications
National Institutes of Health
"'All we have to do is show animals being trapped or inhumanely
confined and people feel empathy for them,' Fox says. 'I think
we've done our job in convincing the public that it's need-
lessly cruel and selfish. The fabric of society changed - no
pun intended - not to include fur.'"
Mary Elizabeth Cronin in the Seattle Times, 10/26/94
Quoting Mitchell Fox of the Progressive Animal Welfare Society
Discussing the closing of a downtown fur store
So why do we apologize? Why do we humble ourselves with all
the guilt and self-recriminations? I say that we should not!
02.05Q: Are puns dangerous?
A: There are only 15 recorded deaths attributed to punning, and
the majority of those were individuals that unfortunately
responded to an ad in Variety seeking "headliners" for the
court of King Henry VIII.
However, so many a pun has resulted in tears, that it has been
said that this is how the two lachrymal ducts, located at the
nasal end of the upper and lower lid margins of each eye, came
to be known as 'puncta lacrimalia,' very loosely translated
from the Latin for "tearfully criminal puns."
Puns don't kill people, people kill puns.
02.06Q: What is it that makes a good pun?
A: * Quick setup (brevity is important)
* No proper names (listener might not recognize the name)
* Familiar references
* A pointed revelation (you should see the spark in the
listeners' eyes as they 'get it')
* Maximum wordplay throughout
02.07Q: Are there different types of puns?
A: Funny you should ask.
Homographic: use of multiple meanings from a single spelling
(e.g., "pen" for writing instrument or animal
enclosure). Also referred to as antanaclasis.
Homophonic: use of like sounds but with different spellings
and meanings. Also referred to as polyptoton.
Examples of homophones from A to Z:
ad ... add nap ... knap
buy ... by oar ... or
caries ... carrys primer ... primmer
damn ... dam queue ... cue
eerie ... Erie rain ... rein ... reign
for ... four scent ... sent
gait ... gate taro ... tarot
hear ... hear urn ... earn
idle ... idol vain ... vane
jeans ... genes waive ... wave
knot ... not xero ... zero
ledger ... leger yore ... your
main ... mane ... Maine zounds ... sounds
Okay, I'll admit that that last one _was_ a bit
of a stretch. So zoo me! Let's see if you can
do any better with that 26th letter!
"Indeed let's carve out a better example of a Z,"
Tom said Zorrowfully.
Double-sound: used in the typical "knock-knock" joke.
Knock knock.
"Who's there?"
"Orange."
"Orange who?"
"Orange you going to open the door?"
What makes the above joke so gosh darn apeeling,
is the substitution of "orange" for the
contraction "aren't."
02.08Q: What is a Spoonerism?
A: Named after Rev. W.A. Spooner (1844-1930), a distinguised
Anglican clergyman and warden of New College, Oxford, England,
a spoonerism is an unintential interchange of sounds, usually
initial sounds, in two or more words, often with a resultant
comical effect. Examples: "hush my brat" for "brush my hat"
or "scoop of boy trouts" for "troop of boy scouts" or "I have
a half-warmed fish in my mind" for "I have a half-formed wish
in my mind." Spooner was reportedly a nervous man who committed
many of these verbal witticisms, albeit unintentionally.
02.09Q: "Who is this Tom Swifty character anyway," Tom inquired
unselfconsciously.
A: A Tom Swifty is a play on words that derives its humor on a
punning relationship between the way an adverb describes a
speaker, and at the same time refers significantly to the
context of the speaker's statement. Huh? Here's an example:
"Take the prisoner downstairs," Tom said condescendingly.
The adverb 'condescendingly' makes a double pun on the
related words 'con' (prisoner) and 'descending' (downstairs).
The original Tom Swift was a fictional title character in a
series of childrens books written by Edward L. Stratemeyer
(1862-1930). The adventure stories depicted young Tom as an
ingenious man whose amazing inventions took him to unusual
places around the world. In these books, Stratemeyer always
avoided using the word 'said' alone in describing Tom's
utterances; Tom asserted, averred, chorkled, declared,
expostulated, grimaced, grinned, groaned, quipped, smiled,
etc. Or if he was ever reported to have 'said' something,
Stratemeyer would add an adverb to provide a more colorful
impact.
Eventually, someone decided to satirize the mannerism by
using punning adverbs, and the Tom Swifty was born! A
similar satirization whereby a verb supplies the pun instead
of an adverb, has been termed 'croaker' (coined by Roy
Bongartz): "I'm dying," he croaked.
02.10Q: What are portmanteau words?
A: These are words that are formed by telescoping two other words
in on themselves. Examples: motorcade (motor cavalcade),
travelogue (travel monologue), avionics (aviation electronics),
bit (binary unit), and quasar (quasistellar source).
Portmanteau is itself a portmanteau word, originating from the
the French 'portemanteau,' a compound formed from 'porter'
(to carry) and 'manteau' (cloak).
02.11Q: What is a palindrome?
A: It is a word, verse or sentence that reads the same backwards
as it does forwards (not counting any punctuation or spacing).
Examples: "madam" or "able was I ere I saw Elba."
03.01Q: What do folks have to say about punning?
A: Just this:
Fred Allen: "Hanging is too good for a man who makes puns; he
should be drawn and quoted."
Dave Barry: "Puns are little 'plays on words' that a certain
breed of person loves to spring on you and then look at you in
a certain self-satisfied way to indicate that he thinks that
you must think that he is by far the cleverest person on Earth
now that Benjamin Franklin is dead, when in fact what you are
thinking is that if this person ever ends up in a lifeboat,
the other passengers will hurl him overboard by the end of the
first day even if they have plenty of food and water."
James Boswell on puns: "... a good pun may be admitted
among the smaller excellencies of lively conversation."
Anthony Burgess: "... plurality of reference is in the very
nature of language, and its management and exploitation is one
of the joys of writing."
Samuel Taylor Coleridge: In a lecture on Shakespeare, he said
that punning "may be the lowest, but at all events is the most
harmless kind of wit, because it never excites envy."
William Combe: "A paltry, humbug jest; those who have the
least wit make them best."
John Dennis: "A man who would make such an execrable pun would
not scruple to pick my pocket."
John Dryden: ... to "torture one poor word ten thousand ways."
Henry Erskine: When asked if the pun is the lowest form of
wit, he replied, "It is, and therefore the foundation of all
wit."
Oliver Wendell Holmes: "People that make puns are like wanton
boys that put coppers on the railroad tracks. They amuse
themselves and other children, but their little trick may upset
a freight train of conversation for the sake of a battered
witticism."
Oliver Wendel Holmes: "There is no such thing as a female
punster." {I guess that means that punning is a crime for
malefactors only!}
Victor Hugo: "Le calembour est la fiente de l'esprit qui vole."
Samuel Johnson: "If I were punished for every pun I shed,
there would not be left a puny shed of my punnish head."
Arthur Koestler: "... two strings of thought tied with an
acoustic knot."
Charles Lamb: "... a noble thing per se. It fills the mind,
it is as perfect as a sonnet; better."
Charles Lamb: "... a pistol let off at the ear; not a feather
to tickle the intellect."
Oscar Levant: "A pun is the lowest form of humor - when you
don't think of it first."
Leonard L. Levinson: "... a joke based on the infirmities of
language."
Christopher Morley: "... language on vacation."
Edgar Allen Poe: "Of puns it has been said that those who most
dislike them are those who are least able to utter them."
Sydney Smith on puns: "The wit of words. They are exactly the
same to words which wit is to ideas, and consist in the sudden
discovery of relations in language."
Jonathan Swift: "... a talent which no man effects to despise
but he that is without it."
Jonathan Swift: "Punning is an art of harmonious jingling
upon words, which, passing in at the ears, excites a titillary
motion in those parts; and this, being conveyed by the animal
spirits into the muscles of the face, raises the cockles of
the heart."
Louis Untermeyer: "... something every person belittles and
everyone attempts."
Noah Webster: "... a low species of wit."
Ambrose Bierce: "... form of wit, to which wise men stoop and
fools aspire."
Okay, okay. So you don't parle francais. You tried to figure
out that Victor Hugo quote above until you were sacre bleu in
in the face. Well, the quote roughly translates as, "Puns are
the droppings of soaring wits." Ha!
03.02Q: Which playwrite committed the most puns to paper?
A: Shakespeare, William, was found guilty of 1062 plays on words
(as computed by F.A. Bather). Examples: the dying Mercutio
describes himself as "a grave man" in ROMEO AND JULIET; in
JULIUS CAESAR, a shoemaker declares himself "a surgeon to old
shoes; when they are in great danger I recover them."
03.03Q: What are some other examples of puns by celebrated individuals?
A: * William Blake: "Her whole Life is an Epigram smack smooth &
neatly pend. Platted quite neat to catch applause with a
sliding noose at the end."
* Peter DeVries: "The things my wife buys at auctions are
keeping me baroque."
* Ben Jonson (English dramatist) was asked by a friend to make
up a pun. "Pun what subject?" was his quick reply. The
friend chuckled and said, "Oh, the king." Ben replied, "But
the king is not a subject; he is the king!"
* George S. Kaufman: "One man's Mede is another man's Persian."
* Groucho Marx: "Time wounds all heels."
* Groucho Marx, while discussing a safari in Africa: "We shot
two bucks, but that was all the money we had."
* Harry Truman, inviting guests to his home in Independence
for one of Bess' home-sooked meals, often quipped, "Missouri
loves company."
* Oscar Wilde's "work is the curse of the drinking classes" is
the most quotable quote in saloons, bar none.
Daffynitions: (words that sound like groups of other words)
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Alarms: What an octopus is.
Crick: The sound that a Japanese camera makes.
Dockyard: A physician's garden.
Incongruous: Where bills are passed.
Khakis: What you need to start the car in Boston.
Oboe: An English tramp.
Pasteurize: Too far to see.
Propaganda: A gentlemanly goose.
Toboggan: Why we go to an auction.
Definitions: (witty transpositions of real words)
~~~~~~~~~~~
Alimony: The bounty of mutiny.
Archeologist: A man whose career lies in ruins.
Atheist: A person with no invisible means of support.
Diplomacy: Lying in state.
Diplomat: One who is disarming, even if his country isn't.
Egotist: One who is me-deep in conversation.
Flattery: Phony express.
Hangover: The wrath of grapes.
Income Tax: Capital punishment.
Kleptomaniac: One who can't help himself from helping himself.
Middle Age: When actions creak louder than words.
Olympic Officials: The souls that time men's tries.
Psychologist: A person that pulls habits out of rats.
Saxophone: An ill wind nobody blows good.
Will Work For Puns ...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I used to assemble new automobiles, but then I retired.
I used to be a ballet dancer, but found it too-too difficult.
I used to be a banker, but lost interest in the work.
I used to be a blackjack host, but was offered a better deal.
I used to work for Budweiser, but then I got canned.
I used to be a butler, but found the work wasn't my cup of tea.
I used to be a carpenter, but then I got bored.
I used to work at a diet center, but then the staff was down-sized.
I used to be a fisherman, but I got caught playing hooky.
I used to work for H&R Block, but it was just too taxing.
I used to be a part-time hairdresser, but opted for something more permanent.
I used to be a Hollywood agent, but then I promoted myself.
I used to be a hotel clerk, but then I had reservations.
I used to be a lumberjack, but then I got the axe.
I used to be a marathon runner, but couldn't stand the agony of defeat.
I used to sell ovens, but then I was fired.
I used to be a pimp, but then I got laid off.
I used to be a printer, but never made a good impression.
I used to be a railroad conductor, but my boss found out I wasn't trained.
I used to be a sanitation engineer, but the city dumped me.
I used to be a taxi driver, but found I couldn't hack it.
I used to be a taxidermist, but just didn't have the right stuff.
I used to be a tailor, but found the work to be just so-so.
I used to be a tennis instructor, but it just wasn't my racket.
I used to be a transplant surgeon, but my heart just wasn't in it.
I used to be a Velcro salesman, but couldn't stick with it.
I used to be a Viagra salesman, but just couldn't keep up.
I used to work for Victoria's Secret, but then I got a pink slip.
Palindromes
~~~~~~~~~~~
Several of the examples listed below come from books by John
Irvine:
If I had a HiFi
Lisa Bonet ate no basil
Madam I'm Adam
Satan, oscillate my metallic sonatas
Senile Felines
And as a final example of palindromes, here's a good one to
Finnish up this section:
Saippuakauppias ("soap dealer" in Finland)
Epitaphs
~~~~~~~~
Stranger, tread
This ground with gravity:
Dentist Brown is filling
His last cavity. ... from PUNS, by W.D. Redfern
Signs of the Times:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Over an antique shop: "Remains to be seen."
In a brassiere shop window: "We're the real decoy."
At a brothel: "It's a business doing pleasure with you!"
In a butcher shop window: "Never a bum steer."
On a diaper service truck: "Rock a dry baby."
On a divorce lawyer's wall: "Satisfaction guaranteed or
your honey back."
On a junkyard fence: "Edifice wrecks."
At a lumberyard: "Come see, come saw."
On a plumber's truck: "A flush beats a full house."
Over the psychiatrist's couch: "I shrink, therefore I am."
At Spooner's Tailor Shoppe: "It's our measure to pleat you!"
At the tire store: "We skid you not!"
Spoonerisms:
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Is it kistomary to cuss the bride?"
"Three cheers for our queer old dean Victoria!"
Tom Swifties:
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Let's go to McDonald's," said Tom archly.
"I know who turned off the lights," Tom hinted darkly.
"You're a real zero," said Tom naughtily.
"I'm wearing my wedding ring," said Tom with abandon.
"I've caught Moby Dick!" Tom wailed.
"I hate Chablis," Tom whined.
05.01Q: Have any books been written about the Art of Punning?
A: Write on! Here they are, in alphabetical order by author:
SPEECH CLIPS LIBRARY: RIDDLES, PUNS, JOKES, PROVERBS, QUOTATIONS, ALTERNATE DICTIONARY Ace Research, July 8, 2007 ISBN B-000T-BUCB-C (CD ROM media)
THE ORIGINAL 365 JOKES, PUNS AND RIDDLES CALENDAR
Workman Publishing, 1999
ISBN 0-7611-1416-5 $10.95 (desk calendar!)
PUNORAMA OR THE BEST OF THE WORST: VICTORIAN PUNS 
Whittington Press
ISBN 0-9502-1596-1
PUNS, PARABLES AND PERILOUS PREDICAMENTS
Focus on the Family Publishing, 1994
ISBN 1-5617-9154-7 $24.99 0 pages (audio cassette book)
Word Publishing Audio Cassettes, 1998
ISBN 0-9296-0849-6 0 pages (audio cassette book)
THE PUNSTERS LAST LEGACY
Langley Press, London, 1803
JOKES, PUNS AND RIDDLES
by David Allen
Doubleday & Company, Inc., 1968
A POCKETBOOK OF PAINFUL PUNS AND POEMS
by Jonathan Allen
J.M. Dent & Sons, Orion Books, 5 Upper St. Martin's Lane, London WC2H 9EA
ISBN 0-460-06094-5 (1983, hardcover)
ISBN 0-460-88132-9 (1992, paperback)
Cute illustrations highlight the author's off-beat sense of humour!
RHYME & PUNISHMENT by A. Charles Artinian & Pete Ruggieri (illustrator) Ara Consulting Ltd., 1998 ISBN 0-9665-3800-5 $19.00 136 pages (paperback) THE NEW PUN BOOK by T.B. and T.C. Carey-Stafford, 1906
THE DINOSAUR JOKE BOOK: A COMPENDIUM OF PRE-HYSTERIC PUNS by Artie Bennett & Nate Evans (illustrator) Random House, 1998 ISBN 0-6798-8188-3 $3.25 24 pages For ages 4-8 Examples: "What do you call a dinosaur that eats automobiles?" "A car-nivore!" "Which dinosaur knew shorthand?" "Steno-saurus."
WORLD'S PUNNIEST JOKE BOOK by Mike Benny & Sanford Hoffman (illustrator) Sterling Publications, 1993 ISBN 0-8069-8544-5 $12.95 (hardcover) ISBN 0-8069-8545-3 $ 4.95 (paperback) PYRAMIDS AND PUNS
PUNNING FOR YOUR LIFEby Theodore A. Brett Xlibris Corporation, October 22, 2002 ISBN 1-4010-6665-8 $20.99 (paperback, 184 pages) ISBN 1-4010-6666-6 $30.99 (hardcover, 184 pages) BUNS AND PUNS: A HUMEROUS TREK THROUGH THE CREASES, CRACKS
BENNETT CERF'S TREASURY OF ATROCIOUS PUNS by Bennett Alfred Cerf & Michael K. Frith (illustrator) Harper Collins, 1968 ISBN 0-0601-0691-3 125 pages (hardcover)
LAUGH DAY
by Bennett Alfred Cerf & Michael K. Frith (illustrator)
Doubleday, 1965
ISBN 0-3850-5325-8 496 pages (hardcover)
JOKES, PUNS AND RIDDLES
by David Allen Clark
Doubleday, 1960
ISBN 0-3850-9018-8 (hardcover)
ISBN 0-3850-9019-6 (paperback)
GIVE ME BACH MY SCHUBERT (IT COULD BE VERSE) by Brian P. Cleary & Rick Dupre (illustrator) Lerner Publications Company, 1996 ISBN 0-8225-2116-4 $12.95 32 pages (library binding) Ages 4-8
IT LOOKS A LOT LIKE REINDEER (IT COULD BE VERSE) by Brian P. Cleary & Rick Dupre (illustrator) Lerner Publications Company, 1996 ISBN 0-8225-2117-2 $12.95 32 pages (library binding) Ages 4-8
JAMAICA SANDWICH (IT COULD BE VERSE) by Brian P. Cleary & Rick Dupre (illustrator) Lerner Publications Company, 1996 ISBN 0-8225-2114-8 $12.95 32 pages (library binding) Ages 4-8
YOU NEVER SAUSAGE LOVE (IT COULD BE VERSE) by Brian P. Cleary & Rick Dupre (illustrator) Lerner Publications Company, 1996 ISBN 0-8225-2115-6 $12.95 32 pages (library binding) Ages 4-8 CROSBIE'S DICTIONARY OF PUNS
DICKSON'S JOKE TREASURY: AN ANTHOLOGY OF GAGS, BITS, PUNS
AND JESTS, AND HOW TO TELL THEM
by Paul Dickson
John Wiley & Sons, 1992 (revised edition)
ISBN 0-4715-5666-1 320 Pages (paperback)
TOO MUCH SAXON VIOLENCE: AND OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES FOR PUNSTERS
by Paul Dickson
Dell Publishing, 1984 & 1986 (reprint edition)
ISBN 0-4401-8716-8 (paperback)
GUNGA, YOUR DIN-DIN IS READY: SON OF PUNS, GAGS, QUIPS & RIDDLES
by Roy Doty
Doubleday, 1976
ISBN 0-3851-1521-0 $ 4.95 (hardcover)
ISBN 0-3851-1522-9 (paperback)
Gunga Your Din-Din Is Ready : Pinocchio Was Nosey
Pocket Books, November, 1978
ISBN 0-6712-9856-9 (paperback)
PHUNNY PUNS
by Frank Dumont
M. Witmark & Sons, 1905
(hardcover)
SHAKESPEARE'S LUSTY PUNNING IN 'LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST'
by Herbert A. Ellis
Mouton, The Hague, 1973
Walter de Gruyter, 1974
ISBN 9-0279-2616-6 (hardcover)
AN ALMANAC OF WORDS AT PLAY by Willard R. Espy Crown Publishing, 1975 ISBN 0-5175-2090-7 $12.95 (hardcover) Crown Publishing, 1979 ISBN 0-5175-2463-5 $ 7.95 360 pages (paperback)
ANOTHER ALMANAC OF WORDS AT PLAY by Willard R. Espy Clarkson Potter, New York Random House Value Publishing, 1980 ISBN 0-5175-3187-9 $ 5.99 362 pages (hardcover) Outlet Publishing, 1980 ISBN 0-5175-3188-7 362 pages (paperback)
THE BEST OF AN ALMANAC OF WORDS AT PLAY
edited by Willard R. Espy
Merriam Webster, 1999
ISBN 0-8777-9145-7 $19.95 384 pages
CROSSWORD BOOK OF PUNS AND ANAGRAMS
by Margaret P. Farrar (editor)
Simon & Schuster, 1963
ISBN 0-6711-8000-2 (paperback)
THE WIT OF MADAME FIFI by Sue Fenton Madame Fifi Publications, 1998 ISBN 0-9667-4180-3 $13.95 152 pages Examples: "Which French wine do clowns prefer?" "Bozolais." "Where does Seinfeld's neighbor buy his dairy products when he's in France?" "At a Kramerie." "Why couldn't the confused carpenter hammer?" "He didn't have a clou." SONRÍA POR FAVOR! : AFORISMOS, AMBAGES, PARONOMASIAS, RETRUéCANOS, AMBIGÜEDADES Y OTROS BARQUINAZOS DEL IDIOMA by Andrés F. Fidalgo Ediciones Buenamontaäna ISBN 9-5092-3911-9 183 pages BIBLICAL NAMES: A LITERARY STUDY OF MIDRASHIC DERIVATIONS AND PUNS
PUNS, PUNS, PUNS
edited by Helen Hoke and Boris Randolph
Watts Publishing, New York, 1958
212 pages (hardcover)
UPON THE PUN: DUAL MEANINGS IN WORDS AND PICTURES
by P. Hughes & Paul Hammond
W.H. Allen Publishing, London, 1978
ISBN 0-4910-2093-7
PUN FUN
by P. Jennings (editor)
Hamlyn Publishing, Feltham, England, 1980
TOO GROSS PUNS
JEST IN PUN: SIDESPLITTERS FROM BIL KEANE'S SIDE SHOW by Bil Keane Scholastic Book Services, 1971 ISBN B-000I-W2EI-Q (paperback)
PUN-ABRIDGED DICTIONARY by Bil Keane Scholastic Book Services, 1968 $.45 96 pages (paperback) "An explosively funny dictionary in non-alphabetical order, with disorganized cartoon illustrations, and outrageously wrong definitions." Drawn in pun and ink by Bil Keane, the cartoonist most-known for his syndicated newspaper cartoon series called 'The Family Circus.'
DOGGIE TALES: FUN PUNS by Phyllis Forbes Kerr Walrus Productions, 1998 ISBN 0-9635-1769-4 $7.95 160 pages (paperback) VISUAL PUNS IN DESIGN: THE PUN USED AS A COMMUNICATIONS TOOL
GET THEE TO A PUNNERY
by Richard Lederer 
& Bill Thompson (illust.)
Wyrick & Company, 1988
ISBN 0-9417-1108-0 $11.95 149 pages (paperback)
ISBN 0-9417-1107-2 149 pages (paperback)
Dell Publishing, 1995
ISBN 0-4402-0499-2 (paperback)
Examples: "Old Milkmaids never die -- they just kick the bucket."
"Drunk drivers are people who put the quart before the hearse."
PUN AND GAMES: JOKES, RIDDLES, RHYMES, DAFFYNITIONS, TAIRY FAILS
& MORE WORDPLAY FOR KIDS
by Richard Lederer & Dave Morice (illustrator)
Chicago Review Press, 1996
ISBN 1-5565-2264-9 $ 9.95 112 pages (paperback) Ages 9-12
PUNS SPOOKEN HERE
PUNISHED!
THE PUNNY PAGES
THE LITTLE PUN BOOK
PETER'S PAUPER'S PUN BOOK by Robert Margolin & Henry Martin (illustrator) Peter Pauper Press, Mount Vernon, NY, 1962 61 pages (hardcover) PUNCHLINE: HOW TO THINK LIKE A HUMORIST IF YOU'RE HUMOR IMPAIRED by Paul E. McGhee Kendall/Hunt, Dubuque, 1993 ISBN 0-8403-8482-3 $10.00 (paperback) PUNOGRAPHY
WORDS AT PLAY by O.V. Michaelsen (foreword by Richard Lederer) Sterling Publishing Company, 1998 ISBN 0-8069-9791-5 240 pages (paperback) A BOOK OF INTERESTING AND AMUSING PUNS edited by G. Milburn Haldeman-Julius Publishers, Girard, 1926.
THE BEST BOOK OF PUNS by Art Moger (with introduction by Bob Hope) Citidel Press, 1988 ISBN 0-8065-1097-8 $16.95 166 pages (paperback)
THE COMPLETE PUN BOOK by Art Moger Lyle Stuart, 1979 (hardcover) ISBN 0-8065-0664-4 The Citadel Press, Carol Publishing Group, Secaucus, NJ, 1979 ISBN 0-3452-8889-0 (paperback) Lyle Stuart, 1981 ISBN 0-8065-0776-4 $ 9.95 227 pages (paperback) Lyle Stuart, 1989 ISBN 0-8900-9601-5 $ 6.98 (hardcover) SELLING AMERICA: PUNS, LANGUAGE AND ADVERTISING
KIDS ARE PUNNY by Rosie O'Donnell Warner Books, 1997 ISBN 0-4465-2323-2 $10.00 96 pages (hardcover)
KIDS ARE PUNNY 2 by Rosie O'Donnell Warner Books, 1998 ISBN 0-4465-2540-5 $10.00 96 pages (hardcover) A DICTIONARY OF SLANG & UNCONVENTIONAL ENGLISH: COLLOQUIALISMS
ATTILA THE PUN: A MAGIC MOSCOW STORY
PUNS by Walter D. Redfern, Ph.D.
LEO ROSTEN'S CARNIVAL OF WIT : AND WISDOM : PLUS WISECRACKS, AD-LIBS, MALAPROPS, PUNS, ONE-LINERS, QUIPS, EPIGRAMS, BOO-BOOS, DAZZLING IRONIES, AND WIZARDRIES OF WORDING, PLUS by Leo Calvin Rosten Plume, 1996 ISBN 0-4522-7099-5 $17.00 560 pages (paperback) PUNIANA
A DICTIONARY OF SHAKESPEARE"S SEXUAL PUNS AND THEIR SIGNIFICANCE by Frankie Rubinstein St. Martins Press, 1984 Salem House Academic Division, 1984 ISBN 0-3333-4308-5 $36.00 (hardcover) Palgrave Macmillan, 1996 (2nd paperback edition) ISBN 0-3121-2677-8 $23.95 400 pages (paperback) EARNEST EXUBERANCE IN CHAUCER'S POETICS: TEXTUAL GAMES IN THE CANTERBURY TALES
SIGN LANGUAGE: A PHOTOGRAPH ALBUM OF VISUAL PUNS AND PECULIARITIES
by Ann Sanfedele
Carol Publishing Group (Citadel Press), Secaucus NJ, 1992
ISBN 0-8065-1356-X $ 7.95 (paperback)
PUN WITH THE PROFESSOR: PUNOLOGY 101
by Allen P. Schantz
Allen P. Schantz, 1992
ISBN 0-9635-2750-9 $8.95 (paperback)
THE ART OF PUNNING
by T. Sheridan
Carson Publishers, Dublin, 1719
A PUN MY WORD: A HUMOROUSLY ENLIGHTENED PATH TO ENGLISH USAGE
by Robert Oliver Shipman
Rowman & Littlefield, 1991
ISBN 0-8226-3011-7 $14.95 288 pages (paperback)
ISBN 0-8476-7682-X 288 pages (paperback)
PUNS AND POETRY IN LUCRETIUS DE RERUM NATURA
by Jane Snyder
Prometheus Books, 1980
ISBN 9-0603-2124-3 $29.00 (paperback)
METAPHONOLOGY OF ENGLISH PARONOMASIC PUNS
[ Bamberger Beitrage Zur Englischen Sprachwissenschaft ]
by Wodzimierz Sobkowiak (University of Bamberg Studies in English Linguistics)
Peter Lang Publishing, New York, 1991
ISBN 3-6314-3761-7 $58.80 325 pages (paperback)
PENIS PUNS, JOKES & ONE-LINERS: A MOVIE QUOTE BOOK by Steve Stewart Companion Press, 1997 ISBN 1-8891-3807-X $5.95 (paperback) ART OF PUNNING by J. Swift Nichols, London, 1719
THE SMOKING PUN: CRIMES AGAINST THE LANGUAGE
TRANSCENDENTAL WORDPLAY: AMERICA'S ROMANTIC PUNSTERS AND THE SEARCH FOR THE LANGUAGE OF NATURE by Michael West Ohio University Press, 2000 ISBN 0-8214-1324-4 $59.95 518 pages (hardcover) ISBN 0-8214-4053-5 $70.00 TO GRILL A MOCKINGBIRD: AND OTHER TASTY TITLES
06.01Q: Why don't lovers of the pun join hands, interlock their
fingertips and conquer the whorled?
A: There are several organizations dedicated to nurturing the
fine art of punmanship.
1. The International Save The Pun Foundation has been
publishing The Pundit!, a monthly newsletter, since 1980
($24/year). Each year they also publish The Pundit Annual
($11), a collection of all of the puns from the previous
12 months, as well as the "Best Stressed Puns" of that
same year.
You can reach the organization at the following address:
Norman Gilbert
The International Save the Pun Foundation
Box 5040, Station A
Toronto, Canada M5W 1N4
(416) 736-7126
(416) 736-7116 [facsimile]
The International Save the Pun Foundation maintains a web
site at:
http://www.punpunpun.com/ 
2. Punsters United Nearly Yearly (PUNY) is an organization that has co-spunsored "The Annual O.Henry Pun-Off World Championships" for the past 22 years. The event, held on the first Sunday of May, is a fund-raising event for the O.Henry Museum in Austin, Texas (409 East Fifth Street, 78701) and is held on the museum grounds. The museum is in the actual house, albeit relocated to avoid demolition, that writer O.Henry - aka, William Sydney Porter - lived in during the 1890's. Valerie Bennett, the museum curator, indicates that the Pun-Off provides a major source of funding for museum programs such as writing clubs for children. Hours of regular museum admission (free) are Noon - 5:00 pm, Wednesday thru Saturday. The museum's telephone number is (512) 472-1903. Visit the O.Henry Website:
http://www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/ohenry.htmThe Friends of the O.Henry Museum is a nun-prophet organ that co-produces the Annual O.Henry Pun-Off World Championships. It's chairman, Clay Leben, can be contacted via the museum address above. P.U.N.Y. is an organization comprising essentially past contestants of the Pun-Off World Championships. The organization's President/Founder is Gary Hallock. Gary has co-produced and emceed the event since 1990. He is also the publisher/editor of PUN INTENDED, the newsletter for the jeering-impaired, since 1991. Gary can be reached most of the time at (512) 453-4431, or via Internet email here. PUN INTENDED is mailed to paid subscribers 4 times each year via a vast network of often-disgruntled U.S. Postal Service employees. A mere $8.00 mailed to Gary Hallock, 1124-A Clayton Lane, Austin TX 78723, will bring the very next P.I. to your door. P.U.N.Y. has a web site at:
http://bounce.to/puny 
which includes a sign-up for their very punny mailing list!
06.02Q: Are puns allowed on the radio?
A: My word, but of course! MY WORD! is a 30-minute weekly radio
series produced by the BBC. It has been variously described as:
"a witty enquiry into the language"
"a literary riot"
"a mixture of erudition and fun"
"a feast of ingenuity and wit"
"a provocative play on words"
The MY WORD! team of regular word-spinners consists of four
professional commentators and wits, each famous in his or her
own write. One of them, Anne Scott-James, a Fleet Street
journalist of many years' standing, has made this comment on
the program:
"Never since Lewis Carroll have there been such masters of
the pun as Denis Norden and Frank Muir. Their puns are so
outrageous that they set the teeth on edge and send shivers
of pain through the body. They are also so swift and funny
that I often fall off my chair laughing and miss my next cue."
MY WORD! miscellaneous facts:
* Regular panalists: Anne Scott-James
Frank Muir
Denis Norden
Dilys Powell (later replaced by Antonia Fraser)
* Chairmen: Jack Longland
John Julius Norwich
Michael O'Donnell
MY WORD! is aired in the States over many public radio
stations, so check your local stations for availability, dates
and times. It is distributed by the WFMT Fine Arts Network
(Chicago), so if you can't find it airing in your locale, ask
your local public radio station to call (312) 565-5049 and
arrange to fit it into the schedule!
07.01Q: Where could one find a site for an Old Punster's Retirement
Home?
A: Here's an atlas of some possibilities:
PUNA, Bolivia (19 46 S 65 28 W)
PUNA ISLAND, Equidor
Rumor has it that this island is populated by nomads. Maybe
that's where the expression, "Nomad is an island" came from.
PUNAKHA, Bhutan
It is rumored that the men of this town possess above
average sexual prowess, attributed to the fact that they
live on the slopes of the Himalayas. But why then is
the population only 1100?
PUNJAB province, Pakistan
PUNJAB state, India (31 00 N 75 30 E)
While you explore the countryside, Sikh out realtors that
can curry favor with the local building inspectors. You
won't be sari!
PUNO, Peru (15 50 S 70 02 W)
Many good real estate opportunities can be found here,
but don't sign anything in Inca until you talk with your
lawyer.
07.02Q: My coat has two left arms! Is that why I cant draw?
A: Actually, on a factual note, there is a term called canting, or
"punning" of arms that refers to certain designs in heraldry.
It refers to the design of a coat of arms whereby the shield
contains literal images relating to the family name. For
example, the emblem for the Shelley surname would contain
images of shells; or the coat of arms for Wellwood would
contain a picture of a tree growing out of a circular brick
well; or the family crest of a pride of punsters would show a
small audience growing annoyed.
08.01: Usenet
a. alt.callahans
Callahan's Bar for puns and fellowship
b. alt.humor.puns
THE place to be on the Net!
08.02: WWW Sites
http://geocities.com/sanskritpuns99/puns.html
"Sanskritic Wordplay in Gulliver's Travels." Really.
This site is a little unusual in a big way!
http://internet.ocii.com/~cmeek/puns_v2.htm
Chet Meek's Page of Puns, Word Plays, Catchy Phrases, and
Other Foolishness. His page is labelled "version 2", but he
fails to let us know exactly what he has an aversion to!
http://puzzles.about.com/library/weekly/aa000609.htm
"Puns: the lowest form of Wit." Online editor Dave Fisher doesn't
appear puzzled as he tells you what puns are all About!
http://thinks.com/words/tomswift.htm
One of the best lists of Tom Swifties that I've ever come across!
Will I visit the site again? "Perhaps I will," said Tom with all
his might.
http://wordplay.narod.ru/preface.html
"Dictionary Of Wordplay"
Don't ask me 'Y' but Vitaly Sazanovich wasn't Russian when
he took the time to create this rather huge humor website!
It defines funny from A to Z, and includes illustrations.
But fear not, this is a family-oriented site ... you'll find no
Volga humor here!
http://www.ahajokes.com/funny_puns.html
Funny puns, groaners and plays on words.
http://www.angelfire.com/biz/punbook/
Puns, Puns and More Puns. That's the name of B. Brady's pun
book, which he sells right there on his site. I haven't read
his Merry little book, but it appears from his web page that
he's a little spacey!
http://www.badpuns.com
"The site where you get your muds wordled." You'll find Puns,
Tom Swifties, Spoonerisms, Shaggy Dog stories and more here.
http://www.dnai.com/~alderete/humor/norm/punny.html
Here are some instances of punning in a foreign language, culled
from a New York Magazine competition. Hungry for an appeteaser?
Why did Pierre ask the waitress to only bring him one egg? Give up?
Because for a Frenchman, one egg is un oeuf!
http://www.efn.org/~hkrieger/ 
"Churches Ad Hoc" is a divine black & white photo essay of 80
images with very punny captions. Photographer Herman Krieger
has created a site with definite mass appeal. I highly recommend
that you f-stop by!
http://www.english.uiuc.edu/maps/poets/m_r/merrill/puns.htm http://www.essex1.com/people/pcpuns/punster.html
Home page of THE PUNSTER, a newsletter dedicated to puns and
and other forms of wordplay. You can sign up for a free
sample issue, as well as review some home-grown