prison jokes
Ret's ESL Jokes
After a lengthy trial, Bob is found guilty and sentenced to life in a medium security prison.
Arriving just in time for the daily lunch, Bob introduces himself to his fellow inmates as he waits in line for the meal.
Somebody yells out “56!”, and everyone around Bob starts laughing.
“143!” another inmate declares, and the laughter continues.
“What’s with the numbers?” Bob asks.
“Those are jokes,” replies inmate Tom. “All of us have been here so long we memorised every joke, so each joke is represented by a number.”
Bob, wanting to fit in, yells out “three thousand, three hundred and thirty-three!”
After a moment of silence, the prison erupts in guffaws. Tom slaps him on the back and says, “Good one! We haven’t heard that one before!”
Vocabulary
Inmates: people who are in prison.
Guffaw: loud, unrestrained laughter.
Bob introduces himself to his fellow inmates.
The prison erupts in guffaws.
Grammar Focus
The joke uses past simple for main narration and present perfect for experiences up to now, with reported speech introduced by “replies”.
Past simple: Bob yells out “three thousand, three hundred and thirty-three!”
Present perfect: We haven’t heard that one before.
Synonyms & Alternatives
Inmates: prisoners, convicts.
Memorised: learnt by heart, committed to memory.
Guffaws: belly laughs, roars of laughter.
Fit in: blend in, integrate.
Mini Dialogue
Alice: Why is everyone shouting random numbers in the library?
Ben: We’ve all memorised the book of riddles, so we just call out the number!
Alice: Brilliant! Let me try… “One hundred and forty-seven!”
Ben (laughing): Excellent! We hadn’t heard that one before!