How does this even worK?
JOKES DON’T HAVE TO BE FUNNY, THEY JUST HAVE TO BE PUNS.
WHAT IS A PUN!?
All puns are wordplay, not all wordplays is puns. SAY IT AGAIN! OUT LOUD! NOT ALL WORDPLAY IS PUNS!
A pun is a joke (subjective, we know…) that exploits ambiguity in pronunciation, sound, spelling, or meaning of words or phrases in order to evoke multiple interpretations of those words or phrases.
If you think you might have misheard and it’s funny… you’re in the world of the pun.
It’s also about delivery… stand proud and sell your pun! Make sure one could mistakenly mishear the words and mistake them for other words… that’s what a good pun is all about!
WHAT DOES
NOT QUALIFY AS
A PUN?*
*Disclaimer: Judging puns is a very silly idea, which is what makes it such fun.
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You must use the majority of the word in the pun.
2 syllable word = use both
3 or more syllables = use the majority.
It's HILLARYous when you use as many syllables as you can. It’s down HILLary if you don’t.
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We judge it to be lazy to simply substitute the first letter or sound of the word on which you purport to pun. ie., the category is shoes and you say "My favorite musician is Kenny CLOGGins." This is basically a forced rhyme rule. There are exceptions, but you’ll know them when you mishear them…
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Watch out for derivatives, acronyms, and abbreviations. The Reese’s rule is, essentially, the Hillary rule plus the not-reusing-words-that-have-been-used rule. ie., once "Reese's Pieces" has been used, other "Reese's” are out unless you’re going to use 3/5 of “peanut butter cup…”
Once "happy" has been used, "happiness" is out.
This is basically the Hillary Rule, applied broadly.
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We will accept a thing (as fitting the category) for what it’s primarily known for. ie., if the category is “authors” we will not accept Tim Tebow. He may have written some books but is we’d assert he’s primarily known for his talent with sports ball. No offense Tim. If you’re coming to the show to sign books, you’re welcome.
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If possible, avoid the insertion of extra words into the pun that aren’t part of the pun. ie., with a "Peanut Butter Jelly" sandwich, it’s not necessary to say “and” - likewise, it is not necessary to smoosh an extra word or two between the words being punned on. You’ll know if you’re doing it - and we’ll let you know by rolling our eyes… which we know can be mistaken for approval. Which is fine.
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We do not punch down at our show. We encourage humor that includes everybody, not jokes that rely on exclusion or oppression to be funny. Jokes that fail to meet this basic criteria will be brushed aside and the punster will be asked to try again - they can reuse the word, but find a way to make the joke that doesn’t punch down.
Folks, we know it can be a lotta pressure to make a joke on the spot and our brains can be weird and we can get caught in a groove of what we probably shouldn’t say. If you aren’t sure if it’s okay to say - like, it might be hurtful to someone - you’re probably right. Nobody’s gonna kill you, we’re gonna lovingly redirect you. Apologize, say thank you, and try again.
That’s the culture and the community we want to create and live in.
SLINGING A PUN
Punslingers have five beats to deliver a pun on the given topic. Failure to begin before the end of that count will result in elimination.
Then, Punslingers have 30 seconds to deliver. Extra-long set-ups are not usually necessary to get to the pun. Going over earns a Yellow card.
CARDING
Many a fine sport involves the use of yellow cards (a warning) and red cards (elimination) including fútbol, canoe polo, badminton, fencing, bandy, and now... competitive punning!
You can be carded for a number of reasons - the biggest four rules that tend to get you dinged are:
You pun on a word already used that round
You deliver something that's not a pun
You go off topic (determined by judges)
You go over the 30-second time limit
We’re using Bananas as yellow cards and you can accumulate as many as you can carry. At the end of the round, the person or people with the most bananas will be eliminated.
A NOTE ON TOPICS/CATEGORIES:
Judges reserve the right to further define or narrow the category during any round of play. If you push the boundaries of the category, be forewarned - push too far and you will make the judge add restrictions to the category. It’s okay to test the boundary - the first time will usually pass without a yellow card.
As with many sports, the judges, umpires, referees etc have the final say. Ultimately, we’re running the show and the show must go on. We don’t always do it perfectly but we do our best
SOUND LIKE FUN?
DISCOVER WHAT IT TAKES TO
BECOME A PUNSLINGER!
