bad joke
26
2.5
- noun
- /bæd dʒoʊk/
:
mal chiste
- Where do you hear all these bad jokes?
- make bad jokes
- tell bad jokes
- laugh at bad jokes
But anyway there's a bad joke there to be sure.
- But anyway there's a bad joke there to be sure.
- These days, if you want to make bad jokes, being a billionaire is a great idea.
- It was banter that had gone a bit fast with some bad jokes.
- You think it's just a bad joke.
- I apologize for making anyone uncomfortable with bad jokes.
- The whole thing was full of really bad jokes, so I was a lot of nervous laughs and stuff like that.
- What D D is God, it was a bad joke.
- We're kind of like, is it time for house hack dot a anyway, sorry, bad joke.
Examples
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She realized her attempt at humor was a bad joke because no one laughed.
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I thought you were making some kind of bad joke.
-
- Sorry, that was a bad joke.
-
- Officer, Officer, it was just a bad joke.
-
I made a bad joke.
-
Did I tell you I have the worst sense of humor and I make bad jokes at totally inappropriate times?
Fiction book (1999) -
We told bad jokes, vented about our days, shared ideas, and had weekly potlucks.
Academic text (2004) -
Nevertheless, Sciama said, Hawking never lost his ability to tell bad jokes.
Academic text (1991) -
Everyone groaned after he told a bad joke that made no sense.
-
At the meeting, someone shared a bad joke that was completely inappropriate for the occasion.
Synonyms
12
7.9
A joke about cruel or shocking things that many people find upsetting
2
3.8
A silly, old-fashioned joke that is too easy to guess
1
8.0
A joke that is so bad it makes people show annoyance
A very bad, unfunny joke that makes people feel awkward
A silly, old-fashioned joke that makes people groan
A cheap joke that shows bad taste
A rude joke that makes many people feel uncomfortable
How Unfunny
26
2.5
- Informal
2
3.8
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'an unfunny or inappropriate joke' is directly and compositionally derived from 'bad' (not of acceptable quality) modifying 'joke' (an attempt at humor). This adjective+noun combination follows a standard, cross-linguistically common pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
Bad joke shows a clear picture: a joke that has gone bad, like food that has spoiled and makes people uncomfortable. So a 'bad joke' is one that is 'unfunny', 'falls flat', or is 'inappropriate'.