What is the Difference Between a double entendre and a pun?

The words double entendre and pun are both about double meanings. Double entendre, in fact, originated in an obsolete expression in French, which means “double meaning.” The origins of pun are less certain, but it likely traces to the Italian word puntiglio meaning “fine point, quibble.” In English, double entendre refers to a double meaning in which one meaning is usually shocking or risqué in its sexual suggestiveness. Pun usually has more to do with silly or humorous double meanings than with anything sexually suggestive or lewd.

Examples of double entendre in a Sentence

The song's title is a double entendre.

Recent Examples on the Web Lansbury reached back to nineteenth-century genres such as the British music hall and Grand Guignol and adapted them to Sondheim’s punishingly complex score, nailing every double entendre and triple-axel rhyme. — Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2022 The queue for the queue (yes, there was one) was dubbed QEII, a playful double entendre for the line and the queen. — Annabelle Timsit, Washington Post, 20 Sep. 2022 Cringe workout shot: A visual double entendre for the swinging singles aerobics club involving a pin that runs up and down through a stack of weights during reps. — Ellen Gamerman, WSJ, 16 June 2022 For Cannon, who added three children to his already full crew of five in 2021, the cocktail was a double entendre. — Elise Brisco, USA TODAY, 9 June 2022 There are all sorts of double entendre and subtext. — Marc Malkin, Variety, 10 Mar. 2022 The creator Adam Goldman’s script is filled with sharp dialogue and enough double entendre to keep you giggling minutes after the jokes land. — Eric Mcquade, The Atlantic, 27 Dec. 2021 There Were True Meme-able Moments Viktor & Rolf, masters of the couture double entendre, built an entire show as a meditation on not just the brocade and bejeweled trappings, but the actual meaning of royalty (kind of a hot button topic these days). — New York Times, 10 July 2021 The bar's party atmosphere and drinks menu ripe with double entendre are hard to miss. — Tirion Morris, The Arizona Republic, 8 Apr. 2021 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'double entendre.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Dictionary Entries Near double entendre

double Englishman's knot

double entendre

double entry

Statistics for double entendre

Last Updated

15 Oct 2022

Cite this Entry

“Double entendre.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/double%20entendre. Accessed 20 Oct. 2022.

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