A paraprosdokian is a figure of speech that implements a sudden shift in meaning at the latter part of a sentence, stanza, paragraph, or series. It leads to a surprising—and often humorous—ending.
The unexpected change flips the audience’s expectations and creates a comic or dramatic effect. For this reason, many comedians often use paraprosdokians to set up their jokes.
What Is a Paraprosdokian?
As explained above, a paraprosdokian ( occurs when a writer or speaker writes or says something unexpected at the end of a sentence, paragraph, series, or stanza. The audience is taken off guard and must reinterpret what the writer or speaker meant at first.
“Paraprosdokian” comes from the Greek words para, meaning beyond, and prosdokia, meaning expectation. It’s not part of classical rhetoric but is considered a new word, as evidenced by its lack of use in standard English dictionaries.
This a neologism from the late 20th century appeared as early as 1891 in a humorous article from a weekly British magazine called Punch.
Essentially, a paraprosdokian has two parts. The first part sets the audience up by having them form an initial idea of your train of thought. The second part reverses that idea and forces them to reframe your words.
In some cases, paraprosdokians not only change the meaning of the first part of a sentence but also often plays with the dual meaning of a particular word. For example, take a look at this sentence by Benjamin Franklin: Your argument is sound, nothing but sound.
The first use of the word “sound” implies agreement on the argument but the second one makes it clear that he finds the argument useless instead.
Examples of Paraprosdokians
Below are a few examples of paraprosdokians from comedians, writers, and other people of note.
- “If I could just say a few words… I’d be a better public speaker.” —Homer Simpson
- “On his feet he wore… blisters.” —Aristotle
- “I’ve had a perfectly wonderful evening, but this wasn’t it.” —Groucho Marx
- “The ships hung in the sky in much the same way that bricks don’t.” —Douglas Adams
- “When someone close to you dies, move seats.” —Jimmy Carr
- “If you copy from one author, it’s plagiarism. If you copy from two, it’s research.” —Wilson Mizner
- “Death is caused by swallowing small amounts of saliva over a long period of time.” —George Carlin
- “I’m a very tolerant man, except when it comes to holding a grudge.” —Robin Williams
- “Every black American is bilingual—we speak street vernacular and we speak ‘job interview.” —Dave Chappelle
- “I was born in 1962. And the room next to me was 1963.” —Joan Rivers
- “If all the girls who attended the Yale prom were laid end to end, I wouldn’t be a bit surprised.” —Dorothy Parker
- “The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.” —Albert Einstein
Paraprosdokians in Comedy
Because of the bewilderment caused by a paraprosdokian, it’s often used by comedians to enhance or deliver their jokes. It’s especially known to be used by comics who specialize in one-liners.
Paraprosdokians ensure that the audience is engaged and paying attention. The more that comedians use paraprosdokians, the more the audience tries to guess their jokes in advance.
Paraprosdokians in Writing
There are many reasons why writers used paraprosdokians. Aside from its obvious comedic effect, writers also use it to make the readers stop for a moment and think about what they’ve read. It makes them consider the deeper implications of the wordplay—of whether there’s a deeper insight to be had from it.
It’s also used for dramatic effect, giving writers an easy way to build up suspense and deliver something that totally blindsides the audience. Conversely, it can also be used to set up an anti-climax to either bring the story to a halt or reset the pace.
There is a risk to using paraprosdokians, though. When used ineffectively, the audience may not understand the meaning of the paraprosdokian, ruining the pace and style of the entire work.
Have you ever heard of the term paraprosdokian? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
If you enjoyed this post, then you might also like:
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- Mixed Constructions: What They Are and How to Avoid Them
Cole is a blog writer and aspiring novelist. He has a degree in Communications and is an advocate of media and information literacy and responsible media practices. Aside from his interest in technology, crafts, and food, he’s also your typical science fiction and fantasy junkie, spending most of his free time reading through an ever-growing to-be-read list. It’s either that or procrastinating over actually writing his book. Wish him luck!
