Inherently funny word
the words by adding another level of association to comedy.
In the English language, these tend to include words with the letters 'c' and 'k' in and words with the vowel sounds 'oo', 'o' and 'aa'.
For example:
- aardvark
- badger (the comedic writer Dave Barry frequently uses badger in this manner, and has written an essay on how usage makes any joke funnier)
- cow (proposed by Gary Larson)
- sock
- pock
- cack
- kumquat
- rutabaga
- balloon
- bassoon
- nodal
- tapioca
Note also that the words aardvark, badger, kumquat, rutabaga, and bassoon refer to unusual items for some people, which adds to their surprise/strangeness/humour potential.
Yiddish and German words often seem funny to English speakers, in particular those that begin with the /∫/ ("sh") sound, spelled as sch-. Texts in the Dutch language often seem comical to English-speaking readers, in part because much written Dutch is partially intelligible, but curiously spelled.
Another category of words considered funny are those that resemble taboo words or invite taboo mispronunciations, such as fuchsia.
Unresolved questions about inherently funny words include:
- Are there any known physiological or linguistic reasons for why these words are funny?
- Are the funny sounds the same in other languages?
See also: