What are the best Spanish puns?
Using funny puns to learn Spanish can help make it more fun! Some of these Spanish puns have no direct translation and are therefore not that funny in English. Others are hilarious in both languages. Read through them and let us know what you think.
Reading Spanish puns is also a great way to gauge your proficiency in the language – especially the ones that are based on subtle double meanings. If you pick up on it at least enough to chuckle, you might be further along than you think! If you are left scratching your head, you might have a little bit more studying to do. Don’t worry if you don’t understand them all right away, just read them over a couple of times and it might come to you. To help you out a little further, we’ve also included an English translation of each Spanish pun, and a description of why it’s supposed to be funny.
Funniest Spanish puns
| Spanish | English | Why it's funny |
|---|---|---|
| ¡Ojalá lloviera! ¡Ojalá yo también! | I wish it would rain! “I also wish I could see! | "Lloviera" is a conjugation of the verb "llover" (rain). But, it also sounds like the phrase "yo viera", or "I see". The first person is really sayig that they wish it would rain, but the second (presumably blind) person hears it as "I wish I could see" and responds "me too!" |
| ¿Cómo haces para que un pan hable? Lo pones en agua toda la noche y a la mañana siguiente ya está blando. | How do you get bread to talk? Put it in water all night, and the next day it will be soft. | “Está blando” iiterally means "it is soft", but it sounds like "está hablando", or "it is talking" when you say it fast. |
| ¿Cómo se despiden dos químicos? Ácido un placer. | How do two chemists say goodbye? It’s been a pleasure. | Ácido means “acid" in Spanish, but it sounds like "ha sido" which means “it has been.” |
| ¿Cómo se llama el pez más negativo? ¡Pesimista! | What do you call the most negative fish? A pessimist! | Pez means fish in Spanish, and it's also how the word "pesimista" begins. |
| ¿Cómo se llama un hotel muy desagradable? ¡Una posadilla! | What do you call a very bad hotel? A posadilla. | Posada means a hotel or inn, whereas pesadilla means "a nightmare”. Posadilla is a combination of the two words that is loosely understood to mean a nightmarish hotel. |
| ¿Cómo se llama un oso enojado? ¡Furioso! | What do you call an angry bear? Furious! | The end of the word furioso means bear in Spanish (oso). |
| ¿Cómo se llama una ruana estropeada? ¡Una ruina! | What do you call a ruined ruana? A ruin! | A ruana (or a type of poncho commonly worn in areas of South America), sounds a lot like the Spanish word for ruin, or ruina. |
| ¿Cuál es el animal que es dos animales? El gato, porque es gato y araña | The cat, because it's a cat and a spider. | Araña has a double meaning. It can be the Spanish word for spider, or a conjugation of the verb "arañar" (to scratch). So it can mean that a cat scratches, or that the cat is a spider. |
| ¿Cuál es la fruta más paciente? Es pera. | What is the most patient fruit? It is a pear. | The Spanish verb "esperar" translates to "wait", but "es pera" means "it's a fruit"! |
| ¿Cuál es la fruta que más se ríe? La naranja, ja, ja, ja, ja… | Which fruit laughs the most? The orange, ha ha ha ha… | Spanish speakers type out laughter as "ja ja" instead of "ha ha". This is because the "h" sound is silent when it is at the beginning of the word, but the "j" sounds like an English speaker uses "h". The Spanish word for orange ends in "ja", so it sounds like laughter when it is repeated. |
| ¿Cuál es la planta más apestosa? La planta del pie. | What’s the stinkiest plant? The sole of the foot. | Planta means a plant, but it can also mean "the sole of the foot" (planta del pie). |
| ¿Cuál fue el último animal en entrar al Arca de Noé? El delfín. | What was the last animal to enter Noah’s ark? The dolphin. | Delfín literally means “dolphin”, but it sounds just like del fin which means “at the end.” |
| ¿De dónde van los gatos cuando mueren? Purgatorio. | Where do cats go when they die? To purrgatory. | The first part of "purgatory" sounds like the noise a cat makes (in both languages) |
| ¿Por qué hablas con tus zapatillas? Es que en la caja dice Converse. | Why are you talking to your shoes? Because it says Converse on the box. | Converse is a popular shoe brand, as well as the command form of the verb "conversar". So it appears as if the box is commanding him to speak with it. |
| ¿Qué dijo el surfer cuando vio venir el tsunami? ¡Hola! | What did the surfer say when he saw the tsunami approaching? Hello! | Hola, of course, means "hello", but it sounds just like the Spanish word ola, or "wave". |
| ¿Qué hace el pez perezoso? ¡Nada! | What does the lazy fish do? Nothing! | Nada has a double meaning in Spanish. It can mean "nothing", but it can also be a conjugation of the verb "nadar", or "to swim". So it can mean that the lazy fish is swimming, or doing nothing. |
| ¿Qué le dijo ’18’ a ‘2’? Vente. | What does the number “18” says to the number “2"? Come. | Vente means "come", but it sounds like the Spanish word for "twenty" (veinte). |
| ¿Qué le dijo el número 1 al número 10? Si quieres ser como yo, tienes que ser sincero. | ||
| ¿Qué le dijo un techo a otro techo? Techo de menos. | What did one roof say to the other roof? I miss you. | “Te echo de menos” is a common way of telling someone that you miss them in Spanish, but it sounds a lot like the Spanish word for "roof" (techo). |
| ¿Qué quiere hacer una abeja en el gimnasio? ¡Zumba! | What does a bee want to do in the gym? Zumba! | Zumba has a double meaning. It is a popular Latin dance (and now has become a common word in English as well), but "zumbar" also means "to buzz", like the sound a bee makes. |
| ¿Quién es el santo patrono de los zapatos? San Dalia. | Who is the patron saint of shoes? Saint Dalia. | San Dalia means Saint Dalia, but it sounds like the Spanish word "sandalia", meaning flip flop. |
| ¿Y tú qué tomas para estar mejor? Yo tomo distancia. | What do you take to feel better? I take distance. | The verb "tomar" in Spanish can be used to signify "take", as in taking medicine. But it's also colloquially used to mean "take distance". |
| Creo que estás obsesionado con el fútbol y me haces falta. ¡Si no te he tocado! | I think you’re obsessed with soccer and I miss you. I haven’t touched you | "Me haces falta" is a common way of saying "I miss you" in Spanish. But the second speaker interprets it as "falta", meaning fault or a soccer penalty. What fault? I haven't touched you! |
| Cual es la sal que más mal huele? La sal pargatas. | What type of salt has the worst odor? The pargatas salt. | Sal pargatas is nonsense ("pargatas salt"), but it sounds like "las alpargatas", or sandals. |
| El policía buscaba el ladrón de las gallinas. Cuando le veí él llama con su radio y dijo “¡Apoyo, apoyo!” | The police officer was looking for the chicken thief. When he saw him, he got out his radio and called “help, help!” | Apoyo means help, but it sounds just like the Spanish word for chicken ("pollo"). |
| La semana pasada me compré un reloj. ¿Qué marca? ¡La hora! | Last week I bought myself a watch. What brand? The time! | Marca has a double meaning. It can mean the brand of a product, or it can be a conjugation of the verb "marcar", or tell. So the first person is really asking what brand the watch is, but the second person interprets them as asking what the watch tells. It tell time, of course! |
| Llega una manzana a la parada del autobús, ve una pera ahí y le pregunta: ¿Hace mucho que espera? "Nací así." le responde la pera. | An apple comes to the bus stop, see a pear there and asks him: Have you been waiting for a long time? He replies "I was born like this." | Espera means to wait, but it sounds like "es pera", meaning to be a pear. The apple is asking if the pear has been waiting long, but it sounds like he is asking if he has been a pear for a while. The pear says that he's always been a pear. |
| Se acerca el mesero y pregunta: ¿Vino de la casa? Pues claro, ¿de dónde más? | A waiter approaches the table and asks: House wine? Of course, where else? | Vino means wine, but it can also mean "did you come from" (the past tense of the verb venir). It appears as if the waiter is asking the patron if they came from their house, rather than asking if they would like the house wine. |
| Un banco le dice a otro: Que te preste dinero otra vez… ¿tengo cara de banco? | One bench turns to another and says: "I'm lending you money again… do I seem like a bank?" | Banco has a double meaning, bench or bank. The bench is asking the other bench if he seems like a bank because he keeps getting asked for loans. |
| What did number 1 say to number 10? If you want to be like me, you have to be sincere. | Sincero literally translates to "sincere", but it sounds just like "sin cero", which means “without zero.” The 1 is saying that a 10 without a zero can be just like him. |
What are some puns that work in English and Spanish?
We’ve included a literal English, as well as a description of why the pun is funny in Spanish. Sometimes it works in both languages, other times it depends on a word or phrase that doesn’t quite translate. Please let us know if there are other funny Spanish puns that you have heard that we should add to this list. Many of the puns are based on regional colloquialisms, so they can be very specific to a geographic area. But we’d still love to hear them and learn about what’s funny where you’re from!
You may also enjoy our article on 100 Funny Spanish phrases, idioms, and proverbs.
You may also like to read:
How to say the color orange in Spanish.
How to say goodnight in Spanish.
What does te amo mucho mean in Spanish?
Thanks for reading!