--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The definition of wit is a joke that…" description: "\"“The definition of wit is a joke that doesn't make you laugh.”\" — A.A. Gill" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dd/a-a-gill-2-35417_quote_the-definition-of-wit-is-a-joke-that-doe_981239.jpg" --- # The definition of wit is a joke that doesn't make you laugh. ![“The definition of wit is a joke that doesn't make you laugh.” quote by A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dd/a-a-gill-2-35417_quote_the-definition-of-wit-is-a-joke-that-doe_981239.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dd/a-a-gill-2-35417_quote_the-definition-of-wit-is-a-joke-that-doe_981239.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1dd/a-a-gill-2-35417_quote_the-definition-of-wit-is-a-joke-that-doe_981239.jpg) > ““The definition of wit is a joke that doesn't make you laugh.”” [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wit is defined by its failure to provoke laughter, highlighting its intellectual rather than comedic nature. **In simple terms:** Wit is a joke that doesn’t make you laugh. Key Takeaway Appreciate wit’s subtlety over humor. Themes wit humor intellect irony Mood wry analytical Type philosophical satirical When to use this quote - Literary criticism - stand‑up comedy - social commentary - academic lectures Key Concepts Linguistic nuance cognitive dissonance Questions to Reflect On - Why does wit sometimes feel empty? - When does wit become effective? A Different Perspective Wit can be misunderstood as sarcasm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Definition Wit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/definition-wit-1948656/) [Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke/) [Joke Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke-doesn-1948658/) [Laugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/laugh/) [Wit Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wit-joke-1948657/) ## Related quotes > [I love a stupid joke, something that doesn't make any sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-love-a-stupid-joke-something-that-doesn-t-make-any-sense/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [You can't always be 100-percent positive that a joke will work, so you've just got to try it. Fortunately, if one new joke doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-benson/you-can-t-always-be-100-percent-positive-that-a-joke-will-work-so-you/) [Doug Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-benson/) > [I don't mind being the butt of the joke... It doesn't really bother me. I quite enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-seacrest/i-don-t-mind-being-the-butt-of-the-joke-it-doesn-t-really-bother-me-i/) [Ryan Seacrest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-seacrest/) > [Sometimes a joke that doesn't work just needs a breath or a little word or the tiniest little change to be fixed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-silverman/sometimes-a-joke-that-doesn-t-work-just-needs-a-breath-or-a-little/) [Sarah Silverman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-silverman/) > [I once told a journalist that girls call me 'Kitten,' but I couldn't have been more sarcastic, and no matter how many times I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-once-told-a-journalist-that-girls-call-me-kitten-but-i-couldn-t/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [“What do you call a rifle with three barrels? A trifle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-rosenbloom/what-do-you-call-a-rifle-with-three-barrels-a-trifle/) [Joseph Rosenbloom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-rosenbloom/) > [My reputation as a ladies' man was a joke. It caused me to laugh bitterly through the 10,000 nights I spent alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-cohen/my-reputation-as-a-ladies-man-was-a-joke-it-caused-me-to-laugh/) [Leonard Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-cohen/) > [I'm scared of slipping up, of just doing a joke that makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-spade/i-m-scared-of-slipping-up-of-just-doing-a-joke-that-makes-me-laugh/) [David Spade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-spade/) > [“Is a joke truly funny when we laugh at it, or is it merely some aberration of our frontal lobe?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gerald-schroeder/is-a-joke-truly-funny-when-we-laugh-at-it-or-is-it-merely-some/) [Gerald Schroeder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gerald-schroeder/) > [“What if it's just a big, cosmic joke? Then...laugh! .85.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dee/what-if-it-s-just-a-big-cosmic-joke-then-laugh-85/) [dee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dee/) > [Thank you people that are laughing with your hand away from your mouth. That joke is clearly not for everyone, but I enjoy watching…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-tosh/thank-you-people-that-are-laughing-with-your-hand-away-from-your/) [Daniel Tosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-tosh/) > [I could never make a joke about somebody unless I could say it to their face and they'd laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/i-could-never-make-a-joke-about-somebody-unless-i-could-say-it-to/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [JUST READ THE JOKE AND LAUGH !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-read-the-joke-and-laugh/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Your ass is flapping in the breeze,” Maddox warned with what felt like his first real laugh since this whole thing started. “Shut up.”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annabeth-albert/your-ass-is-flapping-in-the-breeze-maddox-warned-with-what-felt-like/) [Annabeth Albert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annabeth-albert/) > [“You know where you can shove your joke. Just get me a new drink and try not to include and of your STD-laced body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrington/you-know-where-you-can-shove-your-joke-just-get-me-a-new-drink-and/) [Kim Harrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrington/) ## More by A.A. Gill > [“I told them this was their language, this English, this most marvellous and expressive cloak of meaning and imagination. This great, exclamatory, illuminating song,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/i-told-them-this-was-their-language-this-english-this-most-marvellous/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“Accent is the last great redoubt of prejudice. The race relations industry, that inquisition of fairness and sensitivity, doesn't protect against discrimination by funny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/accent-is-the-last-great-redoubt-of-prejudice-the-race-relations/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“The only type of humor that is excused lower classness is satire, and satire is the chamber music of comedy - a joke that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/the-only-type-of-humor-that-is-excused-lower-classness-is-satire-and/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“Nobody knows exactly where the first chickens were domesticated – India, China, Thailand, Vietnam – somewhere around 10,000 years ago, which is to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/nobody-knows-exactly-where-the-first-chickens-were-domesticated-india/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“There was a powerful and effulgent smell of industrial disinfectant. It's a smell that never reassures you about cleanliness; rather, it makes you doubly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/there-was-a-powerful-and-effulgent-smell-of-industrial-disinfectant/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“The Gulf is the proof of Carnegie’s warning about wealth: ‘There is no class so pitiably wretched as that which possesses money and nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/the-gulf-is-the-proof-of-carnegie-s-warning-about-wealth-there-is-no/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“Ronald Reagan was a man who knew the diplomatic form. He also had a showman’s ear for a tune. So when, at an official…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/ronald-reagan-was-a-man-who-knew-the-diplomatic-form-he-also-had-a/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“Down a winding cobbled street from the church trips the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance, the most evocative and strangely dramatic of all morris dances,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/down-a-winding-cobbled-street-from-the-church-trips-the-abbots/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“Trojan is giving away Magnum large condoms (do you think they were named after a large wooden animal inside which thousands of little men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/trojan-is-giving-away-magnum-large-condoms-do-you-think-they-were/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“There is no tragedy so utter that a Belgian, with the best will in the world, can’t make worse.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/there-is-no-tragedy-so-utter-that-a-belgian-with-the-best-will-in-the/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“The purpose of an army must surely be to put itself out of business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/the-purpose-of-an-army-must-surely-be-to-put-itself-out-of-business/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) > [“It must be said that almost all primitive people think themselves divinely wrought, singled out and special. Often their names translate simply as "the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-gill-2/it-must-be-said-that-almost-all-primitive-people-think-themselves/) [A.A. Gill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) [Explore all 13 A.A. Gill quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-gill-2/) ## More Joke quotes > [“You know where you can shove your joke. Just get me a new drink and try not to include and of your STD-laced body…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrington/you-know-where-you-can-shove-your-joke-just-get-me-a-new-drink-and/) [Kim Harrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrington/) > [Nobody calls me a racist when I do redneck jokes. Jeff Foxworthy can do as many 'You might be a redneck jokes' as he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-mencia/nobody-calls-me-a-racist-when-i-do-redneck-jokes-jeff-foxworthy-can/) [Carlos Mencia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-mencia/) > [I'm always looking at new ways to tell a joke so that it doesn't get stale while working on new jokes every night or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burr/i-m-always-looking-at-new-ways-to-tell-a-joke-so-that-it-doesn-t-get/) [Bill Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burr/) > [I don't do plays without jokes anymore. I've retired from those plays. I think it's bad manners to invite people to sit in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nighy/i-don-t-do-plays-without-jokes-anymore-i-ve-retired-from-those-plays/) [Bill Nighy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nighy/) > [We're all basically decent human beings so if 3,000 people are laughing at a joke then it's worth telling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-mack/we-re-all-basically-decent-human-beings-so-if-3-000-people-are/) [Lee Mack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-mack/) > [I don't like it when I see a racist comedian go up and say, 'What are we gonna do about all these immigrants?' and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-gervais/i-don-t-like-it-when-i-see-a-racist-comedian-go-up-and-say-what-are/) [Ricky Gervais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-gervais/) > [Westminster is no joke. I took some tough classes there. It prepared me for a tough career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-baldwin/westminster-is-no-joke-i-took-some-tough-classes-there-it-prepared-me/) [Brooke Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-baldwin/) > [If there's something tender going on like that, I can't make up a joke and put it on Twitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-beaumont/if-there-s-something-tender-going-on-like-that-i-can-t-make-up-a-joke/) [Lucy Beaumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-beaumont/) > [Tell me that I misunderstood a joke, but don't tell me that my choice of cravat is wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-niven/tell-me-that-i-misunderstood-a-joke-but-don-t-tell-me-that-my-choice/) [David Niven](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-niven/) > [There were guys in 'The State' who would take one script and rewrite it and rewrite it and rewrite it and fight for it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-ben-garant/there-were-guys-in-the-state-who-would-take-one-script-and-rewrite-it/) [Robert Ben Garant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-ben-garant/) > [“Well, you better look out. They got a new bureau in the guvamint files. It’s called U.W. Stands for Useless Wimmen. Tha’s secret plans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/well-you-better-look-out-they-got-a-new-bureau-in-the-guvamint-files/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [“Caleb fed me better food during my kidnapping than these people. I laugh at my own joke”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-roberts/caleb-fed-me-better-food-during-my-kidnapping-than-these-people-i/) [C.J. Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-roberts/) > [I remember I would always joke among my friends about a remake of 'Point Break'. I would say, 'You know what? Whenever there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-ramirez/i-remember-i-would-always-joke-among-my-friends-about-a-remake-of/) [Edgar Ramirez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-ramirez/) > [The joke is the purest, most essential form of storytelling. 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