buddyfoki.blogg.se - Puns about crosswords

So misdirection is a key ingredient in setting cryptic crossword clues that really pack a punch. The setter can maximise this ‘representational change’ by using ambiguous phonetic, syntactic or semantic forms (for example a noun masquerading as a verb), whimsical definitions and misleading surface readings to send the solver initially off along completely the wrong path.

The linguists talk about this moment in terms of ‘ incongruity resolution‘ but here in psychology we talk about ‘representational change‘, as the solver is suddenly forced to reappraise their whole understanding of how the clue works. What does this mean for crossword setting? As with jokes, this results in a satisfying ‘pay-off’, leading to surprise, laughter and the delight of the Penny Drop Moment. This approach leads initially to nagging puzzlement, which is only resolved when alternative explanations are explored. The solver is sucked into a readily available, but false reading of the clue based on some sort of linguistic ambiguity. ’Įxactly the same mechanism is at work in the cryptic crossword. ‘So, I bought some animal crackers, and the box said:

The listener is led down the garden path, following the deliberately laid trap, before the punchline reveals the unexpected, ‘true’ meaning. In fact, jokes and puns share a common mechanism with cryptic crossword clues, since they are all examples of ‘insight puzzles’: a form of mental challenge which briefly exasperates the would-be solver, before suddenly resolving itself in a gloriously satisfying “Aha!” moment.įor example, a punning joke is usually based on two alternative interpretations of a scripted feed-line, one more ‘obvious’ than the other.

Discovered why electrical equipment was dangerous? (9).

Yorkshire beauty queen, we hear, pulls the wool over one’s eyes (8)Īlternatively, they may be punning riddles reminiscent of Christmas crackers:.

These can be ‘groaners’, like these examples collected by Alan Connor (answers at the foot of the article if you are struggling!):

Of course, one of the staple clues of the cryptic crossword is the ‘homophone’ or ‘sound-alike’ clue, which is squarely based on puns. We also know from our survey of cryptic crossword solvers that solvers are particularly motivated to tackle cryptic crosswords in order to get that euphoric “Aha!” moment – the Penny Drop Moment (PDM) which ‘ makes them smile or laugh out loud‘. This was one of the strongest differences between solvers and non-solvers in the trials – and not something the researchers had anticipated! For example, in lab trials during the 1980s*, many crossword solvers began to laugh when shown pairs of words such as “strawberry” and “traffic”, because their brains automatically supplied the missing link (here “jam”).

Synopsis of Children of the Night - ProstStageProduction.We know that there are individual differences in people’s appreciation of humour – but it seems that cryptic crossword solvers seem particularly attuned to puns and verbal chicanery.

If you like these map jokes, there is an index of joke topics over here. Juveniles.Ī good geography teacher should never be able to tell a pupil to get lost. He makes web-based maps.Ĭhecked on the map as to what the name of the tributaries of the river in Egypt are called. Why are large maps rubbish at playing poker? They always fold. Why are maps like fish? They both have scales. What do you use to find your way around Alcatraz? A con-tour map. I got a pair of trousers with a map of the London Underground on them.

All the streets have no name, and I still haven’t found what I’m looking for. A spokesman said that they are searching for Leeds. Yorkshire Constabulary have had all of their maps stolen. As normal, they come with no guarantee of hilarity or originality… but hopefully they will help you find your way through. The topic for this week’s puns and one liners is map jokes.