We asked you to send us dad jokes. Here are 39 to delight and annoy you.

Yes, they are corny. But dad jokes are also a way for people — even those who aren’t actual fathers — to connect and build social bonds.

June 21, 2026 - By Lindsey Bever

Turns out, some people may not get enough credit when it comes to their silly, G-rated jokes.

There’s surprisingly complex science behind the humor of one of the corniest, pun-ishing and most cringeworthy categories of humor: dad jokes. In one study, published as a preprint (meaning it has not yet been peer-reviewed), researchers analyzed 32,000 dad jokes from a subreddit, r/dadjokes.

They found that the funniest ones — as rated by Redditors — have a tried-and-true structure. The best tended to use puns, literalization — turning an idiom into reality — and pedantic humor to delight and torment children in equal measures.

(In case you need any pointers, study authors Paul Silvia, a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and colleague Meriel Burnett, at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, offered the collection to any “researchers interested in studying humor or hassling their teenagers.”)

“These are jokes that dads tell their kids. The kids crack up when they’re younger, but then they start growing up and getting irritated as teenagers because these jokes are so deliberately uncool. It highlights what humor really does — it brings people together and unites people in something fun and friendly and entertaining that builds social bonds,” Silvia said.

We asked our readers to submit their best dad jokes and collected some that they have sent us over the years. We even asked people why they love dad jokes so much and what they get out of the eyerolls and heavy groans.

The meaning behind the humor

Whether actual fathers, uncles or humor-loving friends, some people said that dad jokes are about more than the joke itself. The silliness helps them express themselves, connect with others and make lasting memories.

Alex Burgos, 46, of Alexandria, Virginia, started razzing his three daughters with dad jokes during carpool rides to school this past school year as a way to build memories and commemorate their last year in the same school. In videos posted on social media, he delivered many of his own jokes such as:
“Did you know that soccer was invented by a woman?
That’s why it’s pronounced soc-her, not soc-him.”

While his oldest daughter, age 14, usually remains stoic or rolls her eyes as many teenagers do, he said, his 11- and 9-year-old got a kick out of trying to guess the punch lines and even tried out their own “daughter jokes.”

“It really gave me a deeper appreciation of the fact that life is full of big moments and milestones, but you also have to remember to embrace the beauty of the routine,” he said. “The routine, for us, was the carpool, but the dad jokes are what really brought it to life.”

For Jeff Pelletier, dad jokes are a way to engage and connect.

The 53-year-old, who is not a father but runs the student union and student activities at Ohio State University, said he pulls out his corniest material for his younger colleagues to “get those groans.”

For example:
“Why does the Danish military put barcodes on its ships?
So they can Scandinavian!” he said.

With three grown daughters and no grandchildren, Eric Capellari cracks dad jokes for his grand-nieces and nephews — a tradition that started several years ago when one of them asked him to tell her “a million jokes,” he said.

“She was a pretty tough negotiator, but we reached a compromise, so I would send one joke every Friday afternoon,” he said.

That email list has since grown to include other family members and friends. Capellari, 70, of Sarasota, Florida, said he sends one-liners such as this one:
Child: “Dad, I’m hearing buzzing all the time!”
Dad: “Relax, there’s a bug going around.”

Joke-telling is “just a matter of putting yourself out there, staying in touch,” he said.

Then Capellari, who spoke to The Washington Post while traveling in France, tripped up this reporter: “We are hoping to get to Switzerland. Do you know why? Because the flag is a big plus.”

More dad jokes from our readers

Where do fish keep their money?

In the river bank.

—Jay Holt

How do you catch a unique bird?

Unique up on it.

—Bill Davis

What do you call a camel with three humps?

Pregnant.

—Gabrielle Tillis

Where does the king keep his armies?

In his sleevies!

—Matt Rogers

Why do gorillas have big nostrils?

Because they have big fingers.

—Brian Davidson

Did you get your hair cut?

No, I got them all cut!

—Chip Snyder

How do you know it’s time to go to the dentist?

It’s tooth-hurty.

—Greg Trudeau

I was wondering why the Frisbee kept getting bigger and bigger.

Then it hit me.

—Stephen Dudzik

Termite walks into a bar and says, “Where’s the bar tender?”

—Robin Stuart

Me: “Dad’s hearing isn’t what it used to be.”

Dad: “What?”

—Jennifer Lopeman

I’m management. You’re labor.

Now go cut the lawn.

—Brian Lawson

What do you call a dog with no legs?

Doesn’t matter. He won’t come anyway.

—Dave Cavenaile

How do churches make holy water?

They boil the hell out of it.

—Mary Mahr

Look at those cows.

They are outstanding in their field.

—Mary Coyne

What do musicians do in a cemetery?

They decompose.

—Calvin Finley

What kind of bugs like toast?

Butterflies!

—Alison Creff

Liquor?

I didn’t even kiss her!

—Dana Williams

What do you call a cow with no legs?

Ground beef.

—Amy Barbecho

What did the letter O say to the number 8?

Nice belt.

—Loren Watts

Why do they put only 239 beans in a can of Boston baked beans?

One more and it would be too fo-ahrty.

—Christine Winchester

Shall we go?

As one rabbit said to another, “lettuce.”

—Victoria LaPointe

Me (to my elderly father): “How are you feeling?”

Dad: “With my fingers.”

—Debra Thomas

What did one eye say to the other?

“Just between you and me, something smells.”

—David Jupiter

Want to know how to keep someone in suspense?

…

—Michael Fox

I’m glad they finally caught that scoundrel who was breaking into cars in our downtown parking structure.

What he did was wrong on so many levels.

—Bruce D. Sanders

Why can’t you starve to death in the desert?

Because of all the sand which is there.

—Bob Wright

Who’s in charge at MacDonald’s farm?

The CIEIO.

—Jeanne Perdue

What did the daddy tomato say to the baby tomato when she was walking too slowly?

“Ketchup!”

—Andrea Grillot

What is the difference between a tavern and an elephant fart?

One is a bar room and the other is a BAAAAAROOOOOOOMMM!

—Chris Ross

What do you call a fake noodle?

An im’pasta.’

—Kaytlyn Bunting

Me: “Dad, how do I look?”

Dad: “Well, you used to be little but now you gruesome!”

—Eleanor Supinski

Why should you take your plants to the ballgame?

Because they always root for you!

—Suzanne Lijek

Why are there fences around cemeteries?

Because people are dying to get in.

—Louanne Weston

What’s the difference between me and a calendar?

A calendar has dates.

—Mike Enright

What’s the difference between a dad joke and a bad joke?

It’s apparent.

—Jeff Anderson

For Pelletier, part of the fun of a dad joke is the game — waiting to see whether the person on the receiving end can guess the punch line, or hearing their groans when he has to give them the answer.

“There’s something so good about a dad joke when people are like, ‘Oh, I should have gotten that,’ or ‘That’s so bad that it’s actually good,’” he said.