Q: Where do you find a birthday present for a cat? 
A: In a cat-alogue!
Explanation: A catalogue is magazine that shows things that someone can buy; you might see a clothing catalogue, an electronics catalogue, … You can see images from a 1945 Sears catalogue here. And from a 1980’s Sears catalogue here.
Of course “catalogue” begins with “cat” and that is what makes this joke funny.
¡Happy Birthday to E. A. S.!
Q: Why didn’t the skeleton go to the ball?
A: He had no body to dance with!
Explanation: “Ball” is a synonym for “dance.” So, why didn’t the skeleton go to the dance? Well, because a skeleton is all bones and nothing else, a skeleton does not have a body. That is, he has no body. When you put those two words together you get “nobody.” This joke is funny because it plays with the words “no body” and “nobody.” If he had nobody to go to the dance with he would go alone. In this case he had “no body.”
Q: Why did the lady sing lullabies to her purse?
A: She wanted a sleeping bag!
Explanation: Lullabies
are the songs that caregivers sing to babies at bed time; the hope of singing a lullaby is that the child will fall asleep. The words “purse” and “bag” are synonyms; a purse is a shoulder bag that women use to carry their items. If the purse falls asleep, the bag would be sleeping. A “sleeping bag” is also the term used for a person-sized bag lined with warm materials that is used for sleeping, especially on camping trips. This joke plays on the phrase “sleeping bag” and the double meaning created in the joke.
Q: How does an Eskimo child fix his toys?
A: With igloo!
Explanation: First of all, the term Eskimo is no longer used and is considered negative, pejorative, even racist. The two main groups who live in the northern regions by the arctic circle are the Yupik and Inuit. When naming groups of people let’s ask people what is the best name for them; people have the right to identify themselves.
Let me then, replace it with the word Inuit- How does an Inuit child fix his toys? This joke plays on the word igloo, a traditional ice home of some northern peoples. The word igloo has the word part “gloo” which sounds like “glue.” Glue would be used to fix a broken toy.
Q: What do you call someone who is afraid of picnics?
A: A basket case!
Explanation: Picnics are relaxed, outdoor meals, often eaten on a blanket or a picnic table. When you go on a picnic you take a picnic basket– a basket that has the food and plates and everything you need for the picnic.
“A basket case” is a term used for someone who has lost their mental health and is acting out of the normal (Basket Case is also a song by Green Day which I have never heard but will listen to now). This joke plays on the term “basket case” because you bring a basket to a picnic and no one is really afraid of picnics… at least I don’t think they are.
Q: Why can’t you take anything balloons say seriously?
A: They’re always full of hot air!
Explanation: “To take something seriously” is to believe what someone is saying. “To be full of hot air” is to talk a lot without saying anything of importance or to say things that are not true. Balloons that rise into the air are literally full of hot air (or helium). This joke plays on the phrase “full of hot air.”
Q: Why did Michael’s grades drop after the holidays?
A: Because everything was marked down!
Explanation: The holidays refers to the time of the year between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. It is a time when lots of people by many gifts for various occasions (remember, these jokes mostly come from the United States and therefore reflect its humor and some of its customs). After the holidays stores have sales to get rid of merchandise that did not sell before the holidays; when an item is “on sale” the prices are “marked down.”
When a student looses points on an assignment his or her grade is marked down. This joke plays on the phrase “marked down.” If everything is marked down then it looks like Michael’s grades came down too. Perhaps he needs to study a bit more!
Q: What happened to the man who shoplifted a calendar on New Year’s Eve?
A: He got 12 months!
Explanation: Shoplifters are people who steal from a store, usually something small (but shoplifters also steal larger items). Shoplifting is against the law so, if you are caught by the police, you might have to go to jail. If you are caught by the police you will have a trial and get sentenced to spend time in jail. In this case, “He got [sentenced to] 12 months” means that he will spend 12 months in jail. This joke is funny because a calendar also has 12 months, and that is what he got when he stole the calendar.
Q: Why are Christmas trees like bad knitters?
A: They both drop their needles!
Explanation: Christmas trees that are brought into the house often lose their needles; they fall off the branches as the tree dries (even if it gets enough water). When someone knits a scarf or a sweater they use knitting needles, the long sticks that knitters use as they knit one and purl two. This joke is funny because it plays on the double meaning of the word “needles.”
Explain the Joke 