Transpositional pun  

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A transpositional pun is a complicated pun format with two aspects. It involves transposing the words in a well-known phrase or saying to get a daffynition-like clever redefinition of a well-known word unrelated to the original phrase. The redefinition is thus the first aspect, the transposition the second aspect. As a result, transpositional puns are considered among the most difficult to create, and commonly the most challenging to comprehend, particularly for non-native speakers of the language in which they're given (most commonly English).

Examples

Pun Original reference
Alimony: The bounty of mutiny. The Mutiny on the Bounty.
Dieting: A waist is a terrible thing to mind. "A mind is a terrible thing to waste", the motto of the United Negro College Fund.
Hangovers: The wrath of grapes. The Grapes of Wrath
Olympic officials: The souls that time men's tries. Thomas Paine's saying "These are the times that try men's souls".
The Oboe: An ill wind nobody blows good. "'tis an ill wind that blows nobody any good".
Feudalism: It's your count that votes! "It's your vote that counts!"
Screaming: Words speak louder than actions "Actions speak louder than words"
Soldiers of fortune: Give Chance a piece "Give peace a chance"
Vigilantism: the soul of the Dark Knight "The dark night of the soul"
Trophies: the memory of persistence "The Persistence of Memory"
Revenge: Time wounds all heels. "Time heals all wounds."

See also




Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Transpositional pun" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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