English term
So, the mail can be male or female
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Post Master: Now, I'll take it, young fellow.
Man: Oh, where are you taking it?
Post Master: Well, bless my soul. I'm going to deliver it, of course.
Man: Do you deliver the mail as well? Are you the postmaster and the mailman?
Post Master: Letter carrier. We used to say mailman because only men delivered the mail, but now anyone can deliver the mail, men or women, male or female.
Man: So, the mail can be male or female? Ha, ha, ha.
Post Master: Yes, very good, ha, ha, male mail or female mail. Back to business.
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(So, the mail can be male or female?) ←
What does "the mail" mean in this sentence?
Does it mean "mailman"?
Thank you
| 3 +7 | PUN |
Paul Ryan
|
| 4 | so the mail carrier can be male or female |
philgoddard
|
Oct 30, 2021 19:04: writeaway changed "Field (write-in)" from "(none)" to "pun/play on words"
Non-PRO (2): Tony M, Yvonne Gallagher
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Responses
PUN
| Thank you so much, Paul |
| neutral |
philgoddard
: I don't think this really answers the question.
7 mins
|
| agree |
Tony M
17 mins
|
| agree |
writeaway
1 hr
|
| agree |
Clauwolf
2 hrs
|
| agree |
Edith Kelly
11 hrs
|
| agree |
Yvonne Gallagher
19 hrs
|
| agree |
Jafar Qorbani
: "Male can be mail and female". Gender is no longer a certain thing! One could be born as make, but later on they could simply be a female. Or born with a male body but the mind of a female. So males could be male and female!
22 hrs
|
| agree |
AllegroTrans
: Yes, a play on words
22 hrs
|
United States
Six languages into flawless English
Native in: English
Works in: German to English, French to English, Spanish to English, and 4 more.
so the mail carrier can be male or female
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Note added at 30 mins (2021-10-30 17:26:21 GMT)
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I doubt whether this is translatable, if that's what you're trying to do!
| Thank you so much, philgoddard |
| Yes, you're right. Languages are differnt from each other. |
| But we should try to do it as much as possible. |
| Thank you so much, philgoddard |
| neutral |
Tony M
: I don't think that's actually the case: the Post Master is referring to the letter carrier, but the Man is referring to the mail itself; it's a pretty lame pun! / THAT is the joke!
12 mins
|
|
But mail doesn't have a gender.
|
|
| neutral |
Yvonne Gallagher
: agree with Tony, this comment is just punning on male/mail
19 hrs
|
|
The asker knows that.
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Discussion