synonym jokes

[Lynne Murphy]

--On Wednesday, March 21, 2001 3:22 pm -0500 "Simon,Beth" <Simon at IPFW.EDU>
wrote:

> Do these work?

No, there are still no synonyms in these.  More homophony (and other
stuff).   For the sake of the list, I ask that any further correspondence
be directed to me and not the list, please.  I thank you for your interest,
but the homonymy is getting out of hand!

To give an example of synonymous humor, here's a bit from _As you like it_,
where Touchstone mocks a commoner's standing by flaunting his knowledge of
synonyms.  I'm looking for things like this, in which the humor comes from
having the same idea repeated in different words.  Puns are not synonym
humor--they're homophone/polyseme humor.

>
> He, sir, that must marry this woman. Therefore, you
>         clown, abandon,--which is in the vulgar leave,--the
>         society,--which in the boorish is company,--of this
>         female,--which in the common is woman; which
>         together is, abandon the society of this female, or,
>         clown, thou perishest; or, to thy better
>         understanding, diest; or, to wit I kill thee, make
>         thee away, translate thy life into death, thy
>         liberty into bondage: I will deal in poison with
>         thee, or in bastinado, or in steel; I will bandy
>         with thee in faction; I will o'errun thee with
>         policy; I will kill thee a hundred and fifty ways:
>         therefore tremble and depart.


Thanks,
Lynne

M Lynne Murphy
Lecturer in Linguistics
School of Cognitive and Computing Sciences
University of Sussex
Brighton BN1 9QH
UK

phone +44-(0)1273-678844
fax   +44-(0)1273-671320