brevity is the soul of wit

brevity is the soul of wit

proverb The key to humor is being brief, as when telling a joke or anecdote. Come on, get to the punchline—brevity is the soul of wit! Every young comic should be told that brevity is the soul of wit.
See also: of, soul, wit
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

Brevity is the soul of wit.

Prov. Jokes and humorous stories are funnier if they are short. Dale took ten minutes to tell that joke; he obviously doesn't know that brevity is the soul of wit. The comedian was in the middle of a long, tedious story when someone in the audience shouted, "Brevity is the soul of wit!"
See also: of, soul, wit
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • teach a man to fish
  • it takes a village
  • village
  • best-laid plans go astray, the
  • the best-laid plans
  • the best-laid plans go astray
  • the best-laid plans of mice and men
  • for want of a nail
  • For want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse ...
  • tomorrow never comes
References in periodicals archive
Some of them are 'What's done is done,' 'Where there is will there is a way' 'Brevity is the soul of Wit' etc.
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I thought the whole point of microblogging was to prove brevity is the soul of wit? At the very least, the lower limit restricted the amount of tosh President Trump was able to dump on the world in one tweet.
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If brevity is the soul of wit, this is a witty book, indeed.
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As Shakespeare says, brevity is the soul of wit - and so, for posterity, I shall endeavour to do the same with this review.
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Wisdom is humor, and brevity is the soul of wit. "The Little Book of Humorous Quotes" is a collection of short and to the point wisdom from Malcolm Kushner as he compiles many quotes from countless thinkers, comedians, authors, among others to grant a dose of reality when reality proves to be quite a dose of pain.
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COOLMORE seem to be following the advice of Hamlet's Polonius that brevity is the soul of wit with their naming of horses nowadays.
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In this simple article I'd like to sincerely express my thanks to our honor his Excellency the president Ali Abdullah Saleh in a few simple words, because 'brevity is the soul of wit.' I would like to thank our president who could establish Yemeni unity, improve the country and build a strong base quickly although when he reigned over the south, all the banks there were empty.
Thank you President (Community)
We remember his saying, "Brevity is the soul of wit," but not the context, which was this ream of drivel:
Shakespeare's words: quotes, misquotes, and lost contexts
William Shakespeare: Brevity is the soul of wit. Sow "bit" So b' wit, Bow, sit.
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Sadly, we can't use the line "brevity is the soul of wit," to describe this book.
Ty Cohen. The Music Business: How You Can Make $500,000.00 "Or More" a Year in the Music Industry by Doing It Yourself
One of Weidenfeld and Nicolson's Lives series, Pope John XXIII testifies to the fact that brevity is the soul of wit. So few pages, but how far Mr Cahill reaches!
'IL Papa Buono': A New Life of Pope John XXII. (Reviews)
IF brevity is the soul of wit, why does comedian Marcus Brigstocke make 10 minutes seem like an eternity?
LAST NIGHT'S VIEW: Lesson in Marx for history man
And after he says that 'brevity is the soul of wit and tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes', he proceeds to be very tedious as he explains his theory of Hamlet's madness.
Brush up your Shakespeare
If brevity is the soul of wit, this was a real rib-tickler.
Sounds of silence killing Buckley's Midland links
If brevity is the soul of wit then simplicity is the spirit of elegance.
CLEAN LIVING