A pun generator

May 18, 2016 9:56 AM

A pun generator
Generates puns written in the form "You could say he they put the 'demons' in 'demonstrators.'" Written in pure JavaScript, this pun generator can provide a few minutes of amusement, and might even generate something witty and worth sharing!

Please share the best puns in the comments section!

Role: Creator

posted by candasartan (12 comments total)

This project was posted to MetaFilter by aniola on May 23, 2016: A pun generator

Need to filter out the longer words that are just the shorter words plus a 's', 'ed', or 'ly'.

That said,
You put the 'static' in 'ecstatic.'
You put the 'older' in 'stakeholder.'
You put the 'treaty' in 'entreaty.'
You put the 'skies' in 'huskiest.'
You put the 'ratio' in 'reparation.'
You put the 'domes' in 'domestic.'
You put the 'orate' in 'elaborateness.'
You put the 'unmet' in 'gunmetal.'
You put the 'tract' in 'subtracted.'
You put the 'quota' in 'quotable.'
You put the 'amber' in 'chamberpots.'
You put the 'rushing' in 'crushing.'
You put the 'citing' in 'inciting.'
You put the 'creation' in 'recreational.'
posted by oneswellfoop at 11:13 AM on May 18, 2016 [2 favorites]

You put the 'domes' in 'domestic' totally works as applied to Buckminster Fuller.

Need to filter out the longer words that are just the shorter words plus a 's', 'ed', or 'ly'.

I would add 'es', 'ing', 'ish', 'esque', etc to that list of excluded suffixes. There are a few words where adding one of those suffixes significantly changes the meaning (e.g. "princes" -> "princess"), but they're rare.

You could use the CMU pronouncing dictionary to make sure the subword is pronounced the same as it is in the larger word. This would avoid the amber/chamberpots problem.
posted by jedicus at 12:15 PM on May 18, 2016 [2 favorites]

You put the 'lumbering' in 'slumbering.'
One for somnambulists everywhere.

You put the 'eater' in 'sweater.'
Well, that's just mean.

Nice effort, I'm liking this!
posted by comealongpole at 3:02 PM on May 18, 2016

Seems mostly to want to judge my bedroom activity
You put the 'fling' in 'stiflingly.'
You put the 'pokes' in 'spokespeople.'
You put the 'pounding' in 'expounding.'
posted by churl at 5:15 PM on May 18, 2016

(e.g. "princes" -> "princess")

I kind of like "You could say he puts the 'princes' is 'princesses'"
posted by little onion at 7:46 PM on May 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

> You could use the CMU pronouncing dictionary to make sure the subword is pronounced the same as it is in the larger word. This would avoid the amber/chamberpots problem.

I think amber/chamberpots isn't a problem at all, I think it adds a bit of extra fun. If anything you might want to consider dropping the "You put the [thing] in [thing]s", where all it's adding is an 's' at the end.

You put the 'asses' in 'lookingglasses.'
You put the 'crotch' in 'crotchet.'
You put the 'raver' in 'engravers.'
You put the 'noses' in 'prognoses.'
You put the 'neigh' in 'neighbourhoods.'
You put the 'scent' in 'pubescent.'
You put the 'uncle' in 'unclear.'
posted by bjrn at 5:49 AM on May 20, 2016

You put the cosine in cosiness.
posted by MoonOrb at 9:32 PM on May 23, 2016 [2 favorites]

this puts the pun in pungent
posted by EndsOfInvention at 4:37 AM on May 24, 2016

Thanks for all the awesome puns everyone! I really appreciate it.

I fixed the issue where the generator makes very bland puns, like "You put the 'generator' in 'generators'" by eliminating pairs that differ only in endings -s, -ly, and -ing. A version of the site with that issue fixed is here:

www.googledrive.com/host/0BwJRsHpcq0yFWUI3VFlQX3lqQk0

I like the idea of making a version that goes by pronunciation rather than spelling using the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, as jedicus suggested here, and Jon Mitchell suggested on the main metafilter thread. I hope to implement that soon!
posted by candasartan at 10:01 AM on May 24, 2016 [1 favorite]

Putting the ogres in progress.
posted by Strange Interlude at 11:48 AM on May 24, 2016

Nobody better write one about CeCe Peniston.
posted by Strange Interlude at 11:49 AM on May 24, 2016

I love this.

Have you thought about making a Twitterbot that posts these? I'd follow it in a heartbeat.
posted by Songdog at 2:34 PM on June 10, 2016 [1 favorite]