Table 1 The exemplar and relevant connotations of three sentence types
From: Neural representation of mixed feelings during real-time processing of negative words in pun-humor
Type | Example sentence | Pun word | Connotation |
|---|---|---|---|
Pun-humor | 希希经常吃很咸的东西, 毕竟她是个爱食言的人 。(Xixi often eats salty foods; after all, she is a person who loves to break her word.) | 食言(break her word) | [食言]与[食盐]同音 [shi yan] (break her word) has the same sound pronunciation as [shi yan] (salt), which is equal to salty foods. |
Non-humor | 希希经常忘记说过的话, 毕竟她是个爱食言的人。 (Xixi often forgets what she said; after all, she is a person who loves to break her word.) | ||
Nonsensical | 希希经常吃很辣的东西, 毕竟她是个爱食言的人。 (Xixi often eats spicy foods; after all, she is a person who loves to break her word.) | ||
Pun-humor | 小明可能非常喜欢吃鱼, 因为他是很爱挑刺的人。 (Ming is likely to be very fond of eating fish, because he is a perfectionist who loves to nitpick.) | 挑刺 (nitpick) | [挑刺]可字面解释为 [挑出鱼刺] [tiao ci] (nitpick) can be literally interpreted as [tiao chu yu ci] (pick out fish bones), using the same orthographic form to creates humor effect. |
Non-humor | 小明可能要求非常严格, 因为他是很爱挑刺的人。 (Ming is likely to have extremely high standards, because he is a perfectionist who loves to nitpick.) | ||
Nonsensical | 小明可能非常喜欢吃梨, 因为他是很爱挑刺的人。 (Ming is likely to be very fond of eating pears, because he is a perfectionist who loves to nitpick.) |
