What is a joke?

A joke is also a great way to test your reading and comprehension skills. What are jokes and how are jokes different than riddles?

A joke is any verbal mean that is funny and humorous. While riddles come in questions, jokes come in the form of question, short story or even a short sentence. Riddles need answers whereas some jokes are rhetoric and some jokes that come in the form of statement do not need answers.  Jokes can also contain the element of satire, sarcasm, mockery and insult that are aimed to a specific fields or people. Riddles and jokes are different before riddles are logical while jokes are humorous. Nevertheless, riddles and jokes require high reading and comprehension skill to be understood. Check out the joke below.

Little Johnny was sitting in class doing math problems when his teacher picked him to answer a question, "Johnny, if there were five birds sitting on a fence and you shot one with your gun, how many would be left?"

"None," replied Johnny, "because the rest would fly away."

This joke explains the bird’s instinct of survival. If a bird is shot, then the other birds will naturally fly away for safety. This joke is an example of a ‘statement’ joke because it does not require an answer. One needs a good reading and comprehension skill in order to understand this joke.

Jokes can also be in the form of a short story.     

Once upon at time, a couple came upon a wishing well.
The husband leaned over, made a wish and threw in a penny.

The wife decided to make a wish, too.
But she leaned over too much, fell into the well, and drowned.
The husband was stunned for a while but then smiled and said...

"Cool!...It really works"!

This joke explains that the husband is wishing for his wife’s death upon a wishing well. It is ironic because married couple is expected to love and care for each other but in this joke, the husband despises his wife and rejoices to her death. This is ironically humorous and in the same time, this joke portrays the reality of an unhappy marriage.

A joke can also be in a form of questions. For instance,

A man was checking his e-mail.   The room in which he sat had no fans or air-conditioners.   He started sweating.
What will he do to stop sweating (get cold)?

The answer is that he will open the ‘Window’ in his computer.

Funny, isn’t it?