Dajare 駄洒落

dajare · from Japanese

What is a dajare?

Dajare is the Japanese pun, especially a groan-worthy one based on sound-alike words, the classic oyaji gyagu (dad joke).

Japanese has many homophones thanks to its limited syllable inventory and Sino-Japanese vocabulary, which makes dajare easy and endless. They are associated with middle-aged men, and a terrible one may be met with さむい samui (cold). Dajare also appear in mnemonics and advertising.

Examples

布団が吹っ飛んだ futon ga futtonda (the futon blew away); アルミ缶の上にあるミカン arumi kan no ue ni aru mikan (a mandarin on an aluminium can); 電話に出んわ denwa ni denwa (I will not answer the phone)

Kungfucius says: A dajare is successful when the room temperature drops at least two degrees.