running joke

running joke

A joke or humorous element that is introduced early on in a story and then appears or is referred to again repeatedly. There's this weird running joke throughout the novel about the protagonist's dislike of avocado, but it falls flat every single time. What was supposed to be a silly once-off gag in the pilot episode turned into a running joke.
See also: joke, running
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.
See also:
  • inside joke
  • in on the joke
  • crack a joke
  • lame joke
  • get beyond a joke
  • be/get/go beyond a joke
  • Don’t make me laugh!
  • don't make me laugh
  • Don't make me laugh!
  • (with) tongue in cheek
References in periodicals archive
The first notable "that's what she said" joke occurred during a scene in the 1992 film 'Wayne's World.' However, it became a running joke in the hit television show 'The Office,' leading to "dozens of internet memes, video compilations, and even fansites dedicated to cataloguing occurrences and creating new versions of the joke."
The running joke between Dalilah Muhammad and some of her competitors goes like this: She orders the wet conditions.
The great prophet Douglas Adams in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has a running joke about the uselessness of telephone sanitisers in business offices.
The portrait, by fictional painter "van Klomp", was a running joke, often concealed in a knackwurst sausage, providing endless opportunities for ribald jokes.
In 2017 comedian Hari Kondabolu produced a documentary called the Problem With Apu comparing the shop owner to a "running joke".
"It's now a running joke that we'll never be able to get rid of," says Janine, from Birmingham.
Pat said: "The running joke [in the family] was what if we find a murderer?
"Obviously she hit the jackpot and got the big prize but yes that is kind of a running joke in Rita's house at home!
The 26-year-old, an engineering services controller for BT, said: "It's a running joke here that if England beat Colombia and are going to play on Saturday, the groomsmen are not going to let the groom come to the wedding.
A friend of Ed, 27, said: "There is a running joke amongst us because the spot is so secluded, everyone thinks he uses it for naked swimming."
Also, the running joke is that we're not going to see a game from them for a good 10 years, following how long Final Fantasy XV spent in development.
We politicians are an odd breed - I have a running joke with her about dinner time.
All the 007 references you could wish for are crammed into McLaughlin's book (Jake is 006 and a half), plus a ton of gadgets and a running joke about Jake's boss P.
All the 007 references you could wish for are crammed into McLaughlin's book, plus a ton of gadgets and a running joke about Jake's boss, P.