Paraprosdokian (noun)
pa-re-prahz-dok-i-en
A way of speaking where the second half of a sentence changes the meaning of the first, usually in a surprising or humorous way. Often used by stand up comedians and a favourite of Groucho Marx, Mark Twain and others.
Example sentences
“Outside of a dog a book is a man’s best friend, inside a dog it is too dark to read.” – Groucho Marx
“I asked God for a bike, but I know God doesn’t work that way. So I stole a bike and asked for forgiveness.” – Unknown
“You can always count on the Americans to do the right thing—after they have tried everything else.” —Winston Churchill
I love this word, and we use paraprosdokian phrases so often in this house, it’s almost become competitive. Originally from Greek and a very worthy word of the day. You can only use it if you can say it so get practising!
Love the quote by Winston Churchill..lol..I had to share that one on my FB page