Why puns are so hard to translate
If you have ever told a pun to someone who speaks another language, you will know the problem: the joke vanishes. A pun lives in the sound and meaning of particular words, and those words rarely have an exact twin in another language. That makes puns one of the hardest things for translators to carry across.
Why they do not translate
A pun needs one sound with two meanings. In "Why is 6 afraid of 7? Because 7 8 9", the joke works because "seven ate nine" sounds like "7, 8, 9" in English. In another language, the word for "seven" and the word for "ate" will almost certainly sound different, so the double meaning disappears. Translate it word for word and you are left with a strange maths story.
What translators do
- Replace the pun. The translator invents a different pun in the new language that does the same job, even if the words are different. The joke is preserved, but the details change.
- Keep the meaning and add a note. Books and subtitles sometimes explain the wordplay in a footnote. That is accurate, but the joke is no longer funny.
- Choose the meaning that matters. If the pun carries a plot detail, the translator may keep that and drop the second meaning.
- Leave it out. Sometimes the pun is quietly removed. That is the least satisfying choice, but occasionally the only one.
Wordplay around the world
Every language has its own wordplay. In Chinese languages, many words share the same sound, so wordplay based on sound is common, and some everyday customs rely on it. For example, during Lunar New Year celebrations, fish are often eaten because the word for fish sounds like the word for "surplus". Japanese has a tradition of number-based wordplay, where digits are read as sounds to spell out words. Languages with many homophones tend to have a lot of puns, while languages with very regular spelling may enjoy different kinds of games.
Why it matters for you
If you want a joke to travel, choose a visual pun. A drawing of a hot dog on a beach needs no translation. That is one reason cartoons and short videos, like those on our Shorts page, work so well for international viewers: the picture carries half the joke.
A fun experiment
Try translating one of your favourite puns into another language, or ask a friend who speaks one. See how far you get before the joke falls apart. The attempt teaches you how much work the sound of a word does. For more about the different kinds of wordplay, read 7 types of puns, with examples.