Puns, the oldest of form of wordplay, is also the most common one. Webster?s Dictionary defines a pun as ?humourous use of a word, or of words, which are formed or sound alike, but have different meanings, in such a way as to play on two or more of the possible applications.?

The New Encyclopedia Britannica takes a deeper look at the English phenomenon and defines it as ?two disparate strings of thought tied together by an acoustic knot.?

The word ?pun? has evolved from the Italian, puntiglio (a fine point). In the late 17th century, puntiglo was borrowed in to the English language as pundigrion which indeed was a term for what we now know as a pun. As shortening longer words was a rage back then, the word ?pun? came into being. The act or practice of punning is known as paronomasia

Having dealt with Tom Swifties in the past, the other pun-types are: Homographic: Use of multiple meanings from a single spelling (?pen? for writing instrument or animal enclosure). Also known as antanaclasis.

Homophonic: Use of similar sounding of different spellings and meanings. (Buy-by, queue-cue, rain-rein-reign). Also known as polyptoton.

Double- sound: The ones used in the typical knock-knock jokes. Knock knock. Who?s there? Monica. Monica who? Moni (Money) can?t buy you everything.

Spoonerisms: Named after W.A. Spooner, these involve unintentional interchange of sounds in two or more words, often with a resultant comical effect (?scoop of boy trouts? for ?troop of boy scouts?). It is believed that Spooner was a nervous man and committed many of these verbal witticisms, albeit unintentionally.

Due to the ?PJ? tag attached to it, many puns, apparently, result in tears. It is believed that the tear ducts in human eyes came to be known as puncta lacrimalia as it is a loose Latintranslation of ?tearfully-criminal puns?. Puns can be dangerous as well. There have been 15 recorded deaths attributed to punning ? majority of those came to individuals who did the headlines for King Henry VIII.

That, however, should not stop anyone from experimenting with this fascinating phenomenon. Next time you indulge in this lingual sport, remember these pointers to make the joke more effective: Brevity: Shorter sentence are more effective; No names: Not all can recognise proper nouns; Familiarity: Ideally, the topic should be close to the listener.

Now, as you get ready to murder the queen?s language, remember your alibi: Puns don?t kill people, people kill puns.