·           absurd details, images, and situations (often combines stereotypes and the absurd); use of reductio ad absurdum (reduced to the absurd) to add comic details or plot twists increasingly until a situation becomes totally ridiculous

·           (humorous) allusions to literature, famous people, and historical or contemporary events

o   “Mr. Svab’s outfit makes Lady Gaga look like Mitt Romney.” This only makes sense if you know who Mr. Svab, Lady Gaga, and Mitt Romney are.

·           aside: a thought added as if something the speaker was saying reminded him of it, or a minute detail inserted understatedly for humorous effect. Sometimes the smallest details are the sharpest barbs.

·           banter: rapid back and forth conversation; exchange of witty remarks.

·           blendword/portmanteau: blending two or three words to make a new word.

o   smog = smoke + fog

o   ginormous = gigantic + enormous

·           blue humor: an old-fashioned way of referring to humor based on easily offensive subjects like making love, body parts, and bodily functions (in other words, rated R).

·           brevity: short sentences, especially after a particularly long one, are effectively funny.

o   “I am the only person to have ever won an Olympic gold medal in the short-lived Lawn Dart competition at the Helsinki Games. Children trust me.”

·           details: As with any writing, more specific details are always better (and funnier).

o   “A dead dog is funny. A dead chihuahua in a pink tutu is funnier.” - Fain Riopelle (‘11) 

·           euphemism: Using language to make something sound less serious or negative than it is. Sometimes used to obscure the truth or deflect blame or responsibility.

o   “He didn’t die; he passed away.”

o   “He wasn’t expelled; he was asked to leave.”

o   “I’m not firing you; you’re being let go.”

o   The government often uses euphemisms to cover up terrible deeds: “We don’t torture prisoners; we engage in enhanced interrogation techniques.”

·           hyperbole/exaggeration (“overstatement”): This is where a small thing is made into a larger important issue.

o   “Oh my God, I have, like, so much homework tonight. Mr. Svab is like, literally Hitler.”

·           incongruity between subject and tone: when a serious tone is used to describe a comic/absurd subject or when a comic tone is used to describe a serious subject

o   the seriousness of The Onion reporting fake and absurd news.

·           innuendo/double entendres: an indirect, often derogatory hint. The speaker appears innocent and the innuendo is ‘discovered’ in mind of the listener. The most common of these are sexual innuendos.

o   Mae West's “Is that a gun in your pocket or are you just pleased to see me?”

o   The use of the word “it” as in “Comedians do it standing up.”

·           irony: using the unexpected (in writing): "as pleasant and relaxed as a coiled rattlesnake" - Kurt Vonnegut

o   situational: the opposite happens of what you expect to happen

o   dramatic: the audience/reader knows something a character doesn’t

o   verbal: saying the opposite of what you mean - sarcasm

·           jargon: the use of official-sounding, pseudo-scientific, or obscure verbiage to appear intelligent, yet at the same time poking fun at the concept of obtuse and obfuscatory verbosity.  

·           kicker: the last sentence in a humorous essay, story, or article (a term often used in journalism). Onion articles often have a final sharp joke in the last sentence.

·           malapropism: either intentional or unintentional misuse of a word created by using one of a similar sound for another.

o   My sister has extra-century perception.

o   He was a man of great statue.

·           mixed metaphor: to mix common sayings to comic effect.

o   ‘With friends like these, who needs enemas?’

·           non sequitur: (Latin: “does not follow”) When one thing follows another and they are not at all related

o   “I am the only person to have ever won an Olympic gold medal in the short-lived Lawn Dart competition at the Helsinki Games. Children trust me.” 

·           parody: can be good-natured, unlike satire, which is sharper social criticism

·           physical comedy/humor, or slapstick: the visual joke of people falling down, getting injured, or other physical gags. Goes hand in hand with schadenfreude (see below).

·           pun: A word is used to evoke a serious meaning and then used in a completely different meaning altogether.

o   “Why was the mushroom the life of the party? Because he was the ‘fungi’ to be with.”

o   “I’m reading a book about anti-gravity. I can’t put it down.”

·           punching up: The concept of poking fun at those who are above you in society. Target those with power and authority, not victims or those being disenfranchised.

·           repetition: Keep saying something, and it gets funnier. Seinfeld used this technique frequently.

·           rule of three: Humor, and rhetoric in general, is often aided by the rule of three: three examples, three things in a list, three body paragraphs, etc.

·           extended or running gag: an amusing situation or line recurring throughout a story or performance. Catch-22: The dead man in Yossarian’s tent, getting your gums painted purple, etc.

o   'Monty Python’s Flying Circus', a famous British comedy show, had the line 'And now for something completely different' running through many of its episodes.

·           satire: parody that is specific to a social convention or specific person/situation. Often used to point out hypocrisy in society. Social and cultural conventions and mores are usually the target: politics, religions, authority, marriage/relationships, etc. More pointed and critical than parody, usually addressing social problems.

o   Satire is like a guided missile. As long as it has a clear target, it can be efficiently destructive to its target. If it does not have a clear target, it can flail wildly and come back to destroy you.

·           schadenfreude: (German) taking pleasure in others’ misfortune.

o   The reason you laugh at the guy who falls down or gets injured (see physical comedy/humor, or slapstick above).

·           shaggy dog story/joke: Named after an old, dumb, long joke about a shaggy dog, this concept is a joke or story that is so long, pointless, and inconsequential that the humor is derived from the listener/reader being forced to listen to the joke. It goes on and on and on, on purpose. At the end, the audience is both irritated at being forced to listen to this dumb story for way too long, and also laughing at their own predicament of being stuck listening to said story.

·           spoonerism: an either intentional or unintentional transposition of sounds of two or more words.

o   'nosey little cook' instead of 'cosy little nook'

o   'our queer old Dean' instead of 'our dear old Queen'

o   'I'm a damp stealer' instead of 'I'm a stamp dealer.'

·           tragedy + time = comedy

o   The longer time has passed after a tragic event, the more acceptable it is to make jokes about it (See reference to Mary Todd Lincoln below).

·           turn of phrase: In this type of humor, you get the laugh by starting to make a serious point in one direction and suddenly an unexpected meaning is revealed. Mark Twain used this technique when he said that "Youth is such a wonderful thing, it is a shame to waste it on children."

·           understatement: This is the opposite of exaggeration, and words are used to underplay the importance of an event or issue.

o   Someone critically injured in a horrible car accident, and an observer says, “That’s gonna’ leave a mark.”

o   “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?”

Sources for some of the above:

-http://www.write-out-loud.com/types-of-verbal-humor.html

-http://ezinearticles.com/?Public-Speaking---7-Types-of-Humor-You-Can-Use&id=2392608