# Term for a Certain Joke/Smart-ass Remark Format **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 26, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572 "2019-03-26T17:51:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![whc.03grady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@whc.03grady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whc.03grady)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/1 "2019-03-26T17:51:32Z")
“Program speakers are determined by application, invitation, or result of an arm-wrestling match.” “I’ve always loved Los Angeles…the beach, the weather, the horrific traffic.” What is it called when you make a tripartite list like this, where the last element is incongruous and added for comedic effect? I coulda swore there was a name for it. ---
**Author:** ![whc.03grady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@whc.03grady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whc.03grady)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/2 "2019-03-26T17:57:10Z")
Forgot to add: Thanks in advance for your wisdom, thoughts, and hurtful mocking. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/3 "2019-03-26T18:04:08Z")
You may be thinking of the Comic Triple, pretty much the same as the Rule of Three, The first two items provide misdirection, your mind automatically goes to something else that fits with the other two, and then the funny comes from the incongruous third item. But the Rule of Three in comedy doesn’t necessarily take that form, it can just be three funny items. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/4 "2019-03-26T18:05:54Z")
Around here, it’s called the “Hi, Opal!” ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/5 "2019-03-26T18:15:31Z")
“But then I got a little older, a little wiser, a little brother…” ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/6 "2019-03-26T18:23:31Z")
And I should have added that TVTropes deals with it in various ways, listed as sub-tropes of [The Triple](https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheTriple). ---
**Author:** ![whc.03grady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a6a055/32.png) [@whc.03grady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whc.03grady)\ **Post date:** [March 26, 2019, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/7 "2019-03-26T18:37:51Z")
Comedic triple, pretty boring but that must be it. I was hoping it was something Greek like ‘synechdoche’, but I’ll take it. Thanks, all. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Mondegreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/91b2a8/32.png) [@Lord\_Mondegreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Mondegreen)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 1:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/8 "2019-03-27T01:15:39Z")
I’ve heard it called the Rule of Threes ---
**Author:** ![Ace309](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ace309/32/1050_2.png) [@Ace309](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ace309)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/9 "2019-03-27T01:18:34Z")
> [@whc.03grady](#): > > Comedic triple, pretty boring but that must be it. I was hoping it was something Greek like ‘synechdoche’, but I’ll take it. > > Thanks, all. Now that that’s been answered, do you have any other questions, comments, or snide remarks? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/10 "2019-03-27T01:42:09Z")
Beast: I want to do something for her. But what? Cogsworth: Well, there’s the usual things. Flowers, chocolates, promises you don’t intend to keep. ---
**Author:** ![Chessic\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7c8e57/32.png) [@Chessic\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chessic_Sense)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/11 "2019-03-27T03:40:07Z")
> [@](#): > > I was hoping it was something Greek Will you accept “hendiatris”? It’s a type of tricolon. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/12 "2019-03-27T04:09:35Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > . . . and then the funny comes from the incongruous third item. That’s basically what it’s called. It’s a particular convention which embodies “[The Incongruity Theory](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theories_of_humor#Incongruous_juxtaposition_theory).” This doesn’t explicitly mention the “tripartite” aspect of the OP’s specific question, but it makes sense that you need at least two items to set up the initial pattern. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/13 "2019-03-27T10:52:54Z")
Paraprosdokian ---
**Author:** ![CharmaChameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@CharmaChameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CharmaChameleon)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/14 "2019-03-27T20:21:22Z")
How about, “Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana”? No triple, but it works by means of indirection, right? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2019, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/term-for-a-certain-joke-smart-ass-remark-format/831572/15 "2019-03-27T20:48:49Z")
> [@CharmaChameleon](#): > > How about, “Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana”? No triple, but it works by means of indirection, right? That’s just a pun, relying on two different senses of both “flies” and “like”.