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Comment by dvanduzer | Hacker News Reader

Well, the headline rhymes, which is clever, and maybe a bit too on the nose, but...

> "Mr Vollaard’s study has blown the lid off the sealed world of Dutch herring. Fishmongers who long suspected the judge of bias towards Atlantic now say the test is rotten."

No puns there.

> "But the charges of belangenverstrengeling (conflict of interest) have left the test’s reputation for impartiality gutted."

Wait, is the definition of "pun" just that you're using words with a double meaning? Rhyming "funny" in place of the original word isn't the main example of the art?

> "No food is more loved."

Okay, I haven't been to the Netherlands in like 400 years, but I know this isn't true.

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> Wait, is the definition of "pun" just that you're using words with a double meaning?

Yes, that’s pretty much by definition a pun (though it’s usually required to be topical). For instance, Google gives us:

“a joke exploiting the different possible meanings of a word or the fact that there are words which sound alike but have different meanings.”

> Okay, I haven't been to the Netherlands in like 400 years, but I know this isn't true.

A hyperbole perhaps, but it is very popular here.

> […]and accompanied with a pickle.

I think that's just in Amsterdam. Chopped onion is pretty much standard though.

I had no idea. Funny, beacause down with onions, long live the pickle.

And I concur : there’s a lot more truth to the supposed popularity of the herring than of, say, clogs or tulips.

Source: born in Amsterdam.

I have taken a longer than minimum layover in Schipol (AMS) just to enjoy the herring at the airport eatery (Happy Fish I think it's called).

-Rotten - both in use for fish and tests

-Blown the lid - Herring comes in caskets

-Gutted - obviously fish-related

Pretty smart writing!

> Gritty tart biting!

^ So to be clear... That wasn't me making a pun, right?

Nope, not in the majority's book - you need to pass a bar of topical cleverness in order to qualify as a pun.

Though, anecdotally, I've seen the type of wordplay you demonstrate referred to as a pun among English speakers in South East Asia. Where do you hail from?

Los Angeles, descended from early 17th century Dutch colonists. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I must admit to feigning confusion about the definition of puns; I was keying into the original commenter's complaint that the author was trying too hard on the pun front. So I quoted examples of what I thought were exemplary wordplay (i.e. not particularly forced puns).

I am totally confused about your comment. What are you quoting? Who wrote "gritty tart biting"? I don't know what the phrase was meant to convey but I wouldn't consider it a pun.

I also thought "sealed" was a pun towards the sea-based mammals (eg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earless_seal)

> Well, the headline rhymes

How? That does not rhyme at all (unless my english sucks that much).

Come on, you even missed "red herring!"

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