Not to be confused with puns, which employ multiple phrases. A pun (or paronomasia) is a Phrase that deliberately exploits confusion between similar-sounding Words for humorous or Rhetorical

A double entendre is a figure of speech similar to the pun, in which a spoken phrase can be understood in either of two ways. A figure of speech, sometimes A pun (or paronomasia) is a Phrase that deliberately exploits confusion between similar-sounding Words for humorous or Rhetorical In Grammar, a phrase is a group of Words that functions as a single unit in the Syntax of a sentence. This can be as simple as a phrase which has two mutually exclusive meanings, and is thus a clever play on words. An example of this would be the title of the short story, "The Most Dangerous Game", by Richard Connell, in which the title can refer both to the "game" that is most dangerous to hunt, and "game" that is most dangerous to play. "The Most Dangerous Game" or "The Hounds of Zaroff" is a Short story by Richard Connell. Richard Edward Connell Jr ( October 17, 1893 &ndash November 22, 1949) was an American author and journalist best known for his Game is any Animal hunted for Food or not normally domesticated (such as Venison) A game is a structured activity, usually undertaken for Enjoyment and sometimes also used as an Educational tool

In some cases a risqué or sexual element is central to the understanding of the double entendre. The Oxford English Dictionary defines it as 'A double meaning; a word or phrase having a double sense, especially as used to convey an indelicate meaning' [emphasis added]. The Oxford English Dictionary ( OED) published by the Oxford University Press (OUP is a comprehensive Dictionary of the English In these cases, the first meaning is presumed to be the more innocent one, while the second meaning is risqué, or at least ironic, requiring the hearer to have some additional knowledge. Irony is a literary or Rhetorical device, in which there is an incongruity or Discordance between what one says or does and what one means or

Structure

When innuendo is used in a sentence, it could go completely undetected by someone who was not familiar with the hidden meaning, and he or she would find nothing odd about the sentence (aside from other people finding it humorous for seemingly no reason). An innuendo (also called insinuation) is a remark or question typically disparaging that works obliquely by Allusion. Perhaps because an innuendo is not considered offensive to those who do not "get" the hidden implication, it is often prevalent in sitcoms and other comedy which would in fact be considered suitable for children. Comedy (from the Greek κωμωδίαkomodia has a popular meaning (any discourse generally intended to amuse especially in Television, Film, and Children would find this comedy funny, but because most children lack understanding of the hidden implication in innuendo, they would find it funny for a completely different reason than most adult viewers. It can also be used to make more socially acceptable sexual humor. Shakespeare's play, "Much Ado about Nothing" used this ploy to present a surface level description of the play as well as a pun on the Elizabethan usage of "nothing" as slang for noticing. Much Ado About Nothing is a comedy by William Shakespeare. First published in 1600 it is likely to have been first performed in the autumn or winter

Etymology

Although "double entendre" was a French expression when adopted into English, and although both words are part of modern French, their use together has disappeared in French. French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people Double retains the same meaning in French, and entendre translates to "to hear". French refers to such phrases with the term double sens (literally "double sense", i. e. "double meaning"), or double entente, (double or equivocal meaning; a play on words). ^[1]

Historical usage

The title of Sir Thomas More's 1516 fictional work Utopia is a double entendre because of the pun between two Greek-derived words that would have identical pronunciation: with his spelling, it means "no place"^[2] (as echoed later in Samuel Butler's later Erewhon); spelled as the rare word Eutopia, it is pronounced the same^[3] by English-speaking readers, but has the meaning "good place". Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535 from 1935 Saint Thomas More, was an English Lawyer, author and statesman who in his lifetime gained Utopia is a name for an ideal community taken from the title of a book written in 1516 by Sir Thomas More describing a fictional Island in the A pun (or paronomasia) is a Phrase that deliberately exploits confusion between similar-sounding Words for humorous or Rhetorical Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Samuel Butler ( December 4, 1835 - June 18, 1902 was an iconoclastic Victorian author who published a variety of works including the Erewhon, or Over the Range is a Novel by Samuel Butler, published anonymously in 1872 Utopia is a name for an ideal community taken from the title of a book written in 1516 by Sir Thomas More describing a fictional Island in the English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States

The poem Ozymandias by Percy Shelley published in 1818 is an example of ironic double entendre. Percy Bysshe Shelley (August 4 1792 – July 8 1822 ˈpɝːsɪ ˈbɪʃ ˈʃɛlɪ was one of the major English Romantic poets and is widely considered to be among Looking upon the shattered ruins of a colossus, the traveller reads:

My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!

The speaker believes the king's sole intended meaning of "despair" was that nobody could hope to equal his achievements, but that the traveler found another meaning – that the mighty are mortal and will inevitably share his fate of oblivion in the sands of time. This portrayal of an unintended double entendre exemplifies a case of the double entendre as the poet's figure of speech.

Bawdy double entendres were the trademark of Mae West, in her early-career vaudeville performances as well as in her later movies. Mae West (August 17 1893 &ndash November 22 1980 was an American actress, Playwright, Screenwriter, and Sex symbol.

Modern usage

Double entendres have now become more popular in modern movies and television works, as a way to conceal adult humor in a work aimed at general audiences. The James Bond films are rife with such humour. James Bond 007 is a Fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve Novels and two Short story For example, in Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), when Bond is disturbed by the telephone while in bed with a Danish girl, he explains that he's busy brushing up on his Danish, to which Moneypenny replies, "You always were a cunning linguist, James. Tomorrow Never Dies, released in 1997, is the eighteenth Spy film in the James Bond series, and the second to star Pierce Brosnan " (The premise is that cunning linguist sounds like cunnilingus. Cunnilingus is the act of using the Mouth, Lips and Tongue to stimulate the female Genitals. )

Another example would be "I broke a G-string while fingering A minor" which is a double entendre understood only by those who would understand that the G-string is a guitar string and A minor is a chord.

Many commercials for Overstock.com feature double entendres, as an attractive woman talks about the "O" and "Big O", which could refer to the website itself, but clearly call to mind the word "orgasm", which is often called the "O" or the "Big O". Overstockcom ( is an Online Retailer headquartered in Cottonwood Heights, Utah, near Salt Lake City. An orgasm (sexual climax is the conclusion of the plateau phase of the sexual response cycle, and may be experienced by both males and females ^[4][5][6][7]

One popular joke that simultaneously contains and defines a double entendre typically is told as: "A girl walked into a bar and asked the bartender for a double entendre. So he gave her one. "

British comedy

Sexual innuendo is common in British sitcoms and radio comedy such as I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue and Round the Horne. British Comedy, in Film, Radio and Television, is known for its consistently quirky characters plots and settings and has produced some of the most An innuendo (also called insinuation) is a remark or question typically disparaging that works obliquely by Allusion. A British sitcom is a Situation comedy (sitcom produced in the United Kingdom. Radio comedy, or comedic Radio programming, is a radio broadcast that may involve Sitcom elements sketches, and many other forms of comedy found I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue, sometimes abbreviated to "ISIHAC" or simply "Clue", is a BBC Round the Horne was one of the most influential BBC Radio Comedy programmes comparable to The Goon Show in its influence on other For example, in Are You Being Served?, Mrs. Are You Being Served? was a long-running British sitcom broadcast from 1972 to 1985 Slocombe makes frequent references to her "pussy", such as "It's a wonder I'm here at all, you know. My pussy got soakin' wet. I had to dry it out in front of the fire before I left. " Someone unfamiliar with sexual slang might find this statement funny simply because of the references to her pussy cat, whereas generally a viewer would be expected to detect the innuendo ("pussy" is sexual slang for vulva). An innuendo (also called insinuation) is a remark or question typically disparaging that works obliquely by Allusion. Pejorative usage Slurs are used to refer to members of a given sexual Minority, Gender, Sex, or Sexual orientation in a The vulva (from Latin, vulva, plural vulvae or vulvas; see etymology) is the region of the external genital organs

Flax on a distaff

Innuendos have not only been used in modern times—there are riddles in Old English with different possible interpretations. Shakespeare used innuendos in his plays. Indeed, Sir Toby in Twelfth Night is seen saying, in reference to Sir Andrew's hair, that "it hangs like flax on a distaff; and I [Sir Toby] hope to see a housewife take thee [Sir Andrew] between her legs and spin it off;" the Nurse in Romeo and Juliet says that her husband had told Juliet when she was learning to walk that "Yea, dost thou fall upon thy face? Thou wilt fall backward when thou hast more wit;", or is told the time: "for the bawdy hand of the dial is now upon the prick of noon"; and in Hamlet, Hamlet torments Ophelia with a series of sexual puns, viz. Twelfth Night Or What You Will is a Comedy by William Shakespeare, based on the Short story "Of Apolonius and Silla" by Flax (also known as common flax or linseed) (binomial name Linum usitatissimum) is a member of the genus Linum As a Noun, a distaff (also called a rock) is a Tool used in spinning. Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written early in the Hamlet is a Tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601 "country" (similar to "cunt. Cunt ( IPA:/kʌnt/ is an English language Vulgarism referring generally to the Female genitalia. ")

Attitudes to this kind of humour have changed enormously since the 19th century. The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar In the Victorian theatre, innuendo was considered unpleasant, particularly for the ladies in the audience, and was not allowed. Victorian morality is a distillation of the moral views of people living at the time of Queen Victoria (reigned 1837 - 1901 in particular and to the moral climate In the music hall, on the other hand, innuendo was in constant use in songs. Music hall is a form of British theatrical Entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960 Music Hall in this context is to be contrasted with Variety, the one common, low-class and vulgar; the other demi-monde, worldly and sometimes chic. Music hall is a form of British theatrical Entertainment which was popular between 1850 and 1960 A variety show or variety entertainment is an entertainment made up of a variety of acts especially Musical performances and Comedy Skits and Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions (or stratification) between individuals or groups in Societies or Cultures. " Vulgarism " (also called scurrility) derives from Latin vulgun, the "mean folk" and has carried into English its original Demimonde was a polite 19th century term that was often used the same way we use the term "mistress" today See also List of chics. Chic is an element of fashion and the counterpart of posh.

In the 20th century, there began to be a bit of a crackdown on lewdness, including some prosecutions. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on It was the job of the Lord Chamberlain to examine the scripts of all plays for indecency. The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom, and is to be distinguished

Nevertheless, some comedians still continued to get away with it. Max Miller, famously, had two books of jokes, a white book and a blue book, and would ask his audience which book they wanted to hear stories from. Max Miller ( November 21[[ 894]] – May 7[[ 963]] the "Cheeky Chappie" was a 1930s English Music hall Comedian famous If they chose the blue book, it was their own choice and he could feel reasonably secure he was not offending anyone.

The blue, innuendo type of humour did not transfer to radio or cinema at that time, but eventually and progressively it began to filter through from the late 1950s and 1960s. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Particularly significant in this respect were the Carry On films and the BBC radio series Round the Horne, although this humour is carried because of the apparent "nonsense" language that the protagonists use but in fact are having a "rude" conversation in Polari (gay slang). The Carry On films were a long-running series of low-budget British comedy films directed by Gerald Thomas and produced by Peter Rogers. Round the Horne was one of the most influential BBC Radio Comedy programmes comparable to The Goon Show in its influence on other Polari (or alternatively Parlare, Parlary, Palare, Palarie, Palari, Parlyaree, from Italian parlare Spike Milligan, writer of The Goon Show, has remarked that a lot of blue innuendo came from servicemen's jokes, which were understood by most of the cast (who had all served as enlisted soldiers) and many of the audience, but which would pass over the heads of most of the BBC producers and directors, who were mostly "Officer class. Terence Alan Patrick Seán Milligan KBE ( 16 April, 1918 &ndash 27 February 2002) known as Spike Milligan, was an Anglo The Goon Show was a British Radio comedy programme originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960 "

In 1968, the office of the Lord Chamberlain ceased to have responsibility for censoring live entertainment. Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. See also Entertainment (disambiguation and The Entertainer (disambiguation Entertainment is an activity designed to give people By the 1970s innuendo had become widely pervasive across much of the British media. This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970.

Finbarr Saunders is a comic strip in the British comic book Viz which makes great play upon Double entendres. Finbarr Saunders is a long-running Comic strip in the British comic magazine Viz. A comic strip is a sequence of drawings that tells a story Currently in the Western world, most comic strips are written and drawn by a Comics artist The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A comic book (often shortened to simply comic and sometimes called a comic paper or comic magazine) is a Magazine or Book of narrative Viz is a popular British adult Comic magazine that has been running since 1979

Triple Entendre

A triple entendre is a rare variation of a double entendre where a phrase can be understood in any of three ways. An example of this would be the cover of the 1981 Rush album Moving Pictures. Year 1981 ( MCMLXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Moving Pictures is the eighth studio album by Canadian rock band Rush, released in 1981 The title could be read to mean a moving crew transporting paintings, emotional (moving) reactions to the paintings, or a film. Another example is from a famous t-shirt at MIT, when women first were accepted. The phrase on the shirt, 'women multiply at MIT' could mean that women literally multiply numbers, that more and more women are coming to MIT (and the number of women is multiplying), or that women are having children at MIT.

Theoretically, an "entendre" could be extended indefinitely beyond the triple entendre to encompass quadruple entendres, quintuple entendres, et cetera. For the sake of brevity, however, entendres beyond the triple entendre are often referred to as N-entendres or "double-n-tendres. "

See also

• Albur
• Doublespeak
• Euphemism
• Pun
• Spoonerism
• Wordplay

References