What did Tennessee?

The same thing Arkansas.

Joke Explained

This joke is a playful example of a pun that relies on the phonetic similarity between state names and action phrases. In American English accents, “Tennessee” can sound like “Tenne see,” and “Arkansas” can sound like “Arken saw.” Here’s how the joke works:

1. The setup presents the question “What did Tennessee?” which appears incomplete and prompts the reader to anticipate a typical action or event that the state of Tennessee might be associated with, similar to phrases like “What does Mississippi?” or “What will Florida?”
2. The punchline then creatively subverts this expectation by cleverly incorporating the state name “Arkansas” in the response: “The same thing Arkansas.” When spoken aloud, “The same thing Arkansas” can sound like “The same thing arken saw,” playing on the phonetic similarity between “Arkansas” and “arken saw.”
3. The humor lies in the unexpected connection between the state names and the action phrase “arken saw,” which creates a playful and clever twist. This twist relies on the phonetic playfulness of American English accents to create a pun that may not be immediately obvious when reading the words.

Overall, the joke exemplifies how simple phonetic similarities between words and phrases can lead to amusing and unexpected wordplay, adding an element of linguistic humor to the punchline.