pun

• POS: Noun, Verb (usu participle)

CIDE DICTIONARY

pun, v. t. [See Pound to beat.].

 To pound.  [1913 Webster]
"He would pun thee into shivers with his fist."  [1913 Webster]

pun, n. [Cf. Pun to pound, Pound to beat.].

 A play on words which have the same sound but different meanings; an expression in which two different applications of a word present an odd or ludicrous idea; a kind of quibble or equivocation.  Addison.  [1913 Webster]
"A better put on this word was made on the Beggar's Opera, which, it was said, made Gay rich, and Rich gay."  [1913 Webster]

pun, v. i. 

 To make puns, or a pun; to use a word in a double sense, especially when the contrast of ideas is ludicrous; to play upon words; to quibble.  Dryden.  [1913 Webster]

pun, v. t. 

 To persuade or affect by a pun.  Addison.  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

pun, n. & v.
--n. the humorous use of a word to suggest different meanings, or of words of the same sound and different meanings.
--v.intr. (punned, punning) (foll. by on) make a pun or puns with (words).

Derivative

punningly adv.

pun, v.tr. (punned, punning) Brit. consolidate (earth or rubble) by pounding or ramming.

Derivative

punner n.

Etymology

dial. var. of POUND(2)

THESAURUS

pun

abuse of terms, acrostic, alliterate, alliteration, ambiguity, amphibologism, amphibology, amphiboly, anagram, assonance, assonate, be merry with, calembour, chime, clink, corruption, counterword, crack a joke, crack wise, double entendre, equivocal, equivocality, equivocation, equivoque, fleer at, fun, gibe at, jape, jest, jeu de mots, jingle, joke, josh, kid, kid around, logogram, logogriph, make a funny, make fun, make fun of, malapropism, metagram, missaying, mock, near rhyme, palindrome, paronomasia, play on words, poke fun at, polysemant, portmanteau word, punning, quip, rhyme, ridicule, scintillate, scoff at, slant rhyme, sparkle, spoonerism, squinting construction, utter a mot, weasel word, wisecrack, wordplay

ROGET THESAURUS

pun

Neologism

N neology, neologism, newfangled expression, nonce expression, back-formation, caconym, barbarism, archaism, black letter, monkish Latin, corruption, missaying, malapropism, antiphrasis, pun, paranomasia, play upon words, word play, double- entendre, palindrome, paragram, anagram, clinch, abuse of language, abuse of terms, dialect, brogue, idiom, accent, patois, provincialism, regionalism, localism, broken English, lingua franca, Anglicism, Briticism, Gallicism, Scotticism, Hibernicism, Americanism, Gypsy lingo, Romany, pidgin, pidgin English, pigeon English, Volapuk, Chinook, Esperanto, Hindustani, kitchen Kaffir, dog Latin, macaronics, gibberish, confusion of tongues, Babel, babu English, chi-chi, figure of speech, byword, colloquialism, informal speech, informal language, substandard language, vernacular, vulgar language, obscene language, obscenity, vulgarity, jargon, technical terms, technicality, lingo, slang, cant, argot, St. Gile's Greek, thieves' Latin, peddler's French, flash tongue, Billingsgate, Wall Street slang, pseudology, pseudonym, Mr, So-and-so, wha d'ye call 'em, whatchacallim, what's his name, thingummy, thingumbob, je ne sais quoi, neologist, coiner of words, neologic, neological, archaic, obsolete, colloquial, Anglice.

Similarity

N similarity, resemblance, likeness, similitude, semblance, affinity, approximation, parallelism, agreement, analogy, analogicalness, correspondence, homoiousia, parity, connaturalness, connaturality, brotherhood, family likeness, alliteration, rhyme, pun, repetition, sameness, uniformity, isogamy, analogue, the like, match, pendant, fellow companion, pair, mate, twin, double, counterpart, brother, sister, one's second self, alter ego, chip of the old block, par nobile fratrum, Arcades ambo, birds of a feather, et hoc genus omne, gens de meme famille, parallel, simile, type, image, photograph, close resemblance, striking resemblance, speaking resemblance, faithful likeness, faithful resemblance, similar, resembling, like, alike, twin, analogous, analogical, parallel, of a piece, such as, so, homoiousian, connatural, congener, allied to, akin to, approximate, much the same, near, close, something like, sort of, in the ballpark, such like, a show of, mock, pseudo, simulating, representing, exact, lifelike, faithful, true to nature, true to life, the very image, the very picture of, for all the world like, comme deux gouttes d'eau, as like as two peas in a pod, as like as it can stare, instar omnium, cast in the same mold, ridiculously like, as if, so to speak, as it were, as if it were, quasi, just as, veluti in speculum, et sic de similibus, tel maitre tel valet, tel pere tel fils, like master, like servant, like father, like son, the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree, a chip off the old block.

VB be similar, look like, resemble, bear resemblance, smack of, savor of, approximate, parallel, match, rhyme with, take after, imitate, favor, span, render similar, assimilate, approximate, bring near, connaturalize, make alike, rhyme, pun.

Wit

N wit, humor, wittiness, sense of humor, attic wit, attic salt, atticism, salt, esprit, point, fancy, whim, drollery, pleasantry, farce, buffoonery, fooling, tomfoolery, shenanigan, harlequinade, broad farce, broad humor, fun, espieglerie, vis comica, jocularity, jocosity, jocoseness, facetiousness, waggery, waggishness, whimsicality, comicality, banter, badinage, retort, repartee, smartness, ready wit, quid- pro-quo, ridicule, jest, joke, jape, jibe, facetiae, levity, quips and cranks, capital joke, canorae nugae, standing jest, standing joke, private joke, conceit, quip, quirk, crank, quiddity, concetto, plaisanterie, brilliant idea, merry thought, bright thought, happy thought, sally, flash of wit, flash of merriment, scintillation, mot, mot pour rire, witticism, smart saying, bon-mot, jeu d'esprit, epigram, jest book, dry joke, quodlibet, cream of the jest, word-play, jeu de mots, play of words, play upon words, pun, punning, double entente, double entendre, quibble, verbal quibble, conundrum, anagram, acrostic, double acrostic, trifling, idle conceit, turlupinade, old joke, tired joke, flat joke, Joe Miller, witty, attic, quick-witted, nimble-witted, smart, jocular, jocose, humorous, facetious, waggish, whimsical, kidding, joking, puckish, playful, merry and wise, pleasant, sprightly, light, spirituel, sparkling, epigrammatic, full of point, ben trovato, comic, zany, madcap, funny, amusing, jokingly, in joke, in jest, in sport, in play, adhibenda est in jocando moderatio, gentle dullness ever loves a joke, leave this keen encounter of our wits, just joking, just kidding, surely you jest!.

VB joke, jest, crack a joke, make a joke, jape, cut jokes, perpetrate a joke, pun, perpetrate a pun, make fun of, make merry with, kid, kid around, fool around, set the table in a roar, retort, banter, ridentem dicere verum, joke at one's expense, take in jest, bomb, fall flat, go over like a lead balloon.

Absurdity

N absurdity, absurdness, imbecility alogy, nonsense, utter nonsense, paradox, inconsistency, stultiloquy, stultiloquence, nugacity, blunder, muddle, bull, Irishism, Hibernicism, slipslop, anticlimax, bathos, sophism, farce, galimathias, amphigouri, rhapsody, farrago, betise, extravagance, romance, sciamachy, sell, pun, verbal quibble, macaronic, jargon, fustian, twaddle, gibberish, exaggeration, moonshine, stuff, mare's nest, quibble, self- delusion, vagary, tomfoolery, poppycock, mummery, monkey trick, boutade, escapade, absurd, nonsensical, preposterous, egregious, senseless, inconsistent, ridiculous, extravagant, quibbling, self-annulling, self- contradictory, macaronic, punning, foolish sophistical, unmeaning, without rhyme or reason, fantastic, Int, fiddlededee!, pish!, pho!, in the name of the Prophet--figs!, credat Judaeus Apella, tell it to the marines.

Equivocalness

N equivocalness, double meaning, ambiguity, double entente, double entendre, pun, paragram, calembour, quibble, equivoque, anagram, conundrum, play on words, word play, homonym, homonymy, amphiboly, amphibology, ambilogy, ambiloquy, Sphinx, Delphic oracle, equivocation, white lie, mental reservation, paltering, equivocal, ambiguous, amphibolous, homonymous, double-tongued, enigmatical, indeterminate, on the one hand, on the other hand.