I'd assume the misspelling is meant to be how the jokee hears the joker say the punch line. The joker is saying 'An eehive', but when spoken the jokee hears 'A kneehive' hence the confusion.
Interesting! I didn't know that about the word "apron". I looked that up and learned the name of that word-changing process is [Rebracketing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebracketing). I learned something new! Thanks
The shift to 'newt' was in late Middle English, so it predates the Great Vowel Shift. My ejumacated guess is that it'd have been either \[eʊ\] or \[ɛʊ\] which both shifted to \[juː\], \[eʊ\] matches the 'goat' diphthong from RP, \[ɛʊ\] would be like 'mouth' (/aʊ/ in many dialects) but starting higher (at the 'dress' vowel) so *ew* rather than *ow.*
Might not explain how it picked up that ‘n’ though. Presumably if it was ‘yoot’ the indefinite article would be ‘a’ and not ‘an’. ‘Oot’ would fit with ‘an’’. And the change in pronunciation from noot to newt possibly followed from the spelling containing ‘new’. All guess work, I don’t know for sure.
Interesting that the juvenile version of a newt is called an “eft” while the adult designation has elided into “a newt” the juvenile designation has not also elided into “a neft”
It’s still “an eft”
Wait until you hear about unicorn in french.
Originally it was “unicorne” like in other languages, but people interpreted that as “un” + “icorne” (an “icorne”), so it became “icorne”. Then, people started interpreting “l’icorne” (the unicorn) as “licorne”, which is the modern French word for unicorn. (So now you could say “un licorne” or “le licorne” for “a unicorn” or “the unicorn” respectively)
Or it's a reference to the bee's knees. So if the bee's are removed, their possessions (knees) are left behind.
Which requires less knowledge of unusual English language shenanigans
Fun fact: in the 20s flapper jargon, the phrase "that’s the bee’s knees" used to mean that something is great. Probably a corruption of "business" (if pronounced with dramatic drag-out). Interestingly, the phrase survived longer in Britain than the USA, possibly due to American soldiers being in GB in preparation for D-Day.
This makes more sense than what I first thought.
I thought it had something to do with the old idiom "the bee's knees." But I couldn't make it work for obvious. 😄
Now I have follow up questions, like: why did someone cut it off like that? why did someone *redraw this comic* and add the watercooler guy in the background?
ha, it was actually a reference to the rest of this comic, as linked at the top of the thread.
But i get it, the whole "putting together a conspiracy board" trope has sort of been permanently conquered by the dominance of that Always Sunny meme
It may have even been the original author, but they cut it down to four frames because that's all that's really needed. Some people will need it explained to them, but that's how some jokes go. The extra frames could just as well have been the "hidden panels".
I live near a well-known but relatively small, chill theme park called Knott's Berry Farm and frequently go there just to kill an afternoon or whatever. I have to be careful about casually saying things like "hey, let's do Knott's-y stuff this weekend."
If you say it out loud it makes sense. We usually slide words together when the first ends with a consonant and the second ends in a vowel, or the same consonant. There's a term for this but I can't remember it.
So "an ee-hive" sounds exactly like "a knee-hive" when spoken.
But why they changed the original is still a mystery.
Funnily, this happens in real words fairly frequently.
We have things called aprons in English; they were originally “a napron” (related to napkin), but people misheard as “an apron” and the change stuck!
The water cooler guy even though was not in the original one, could have also misheard them both and thought they were making fun of him because he is short or something, knee high whatever whatever and leaves
Just doesn’t explain why he looks so stupid and tries to bite the water cooler
There's a lot more to this comic, the main character goes into a spiral trying to figure out what a kneehive is, finally asking the joke teller, who confirms that he meant "An Eehive."
This feels like a play on the banal anonymity bred into corporate culture.
Man B makes terrible joke, stealing much of the stale airtime of the place. Meanwhile, man C scuttles around unnoticed, biting water coolers in a fret of madness. Man A, in a moment of lucidity, sees it all and descends into gentle confusion. And on and on goes the office grind.
Maybe im overthinking but…
I think the person that posted it is a troll. Obviously the joke is that the guy goes crazy trying to get the joke. Whoever made this cuts out the punchline (the final panels)….so people who see this go crazy trying to understand it. They add the guy at the watercooler to make sure you dont think they accidentally cropped the punch line. Its on purpose.
Thats my take.
My initial take was using the phrase, "the bees knees" and if you take out the bee there, you just get "the knee" so then without bees in a hive, you just have knees in a hive and you get the "knee hive"
I don’t know what you all are on about in this thread this comic literally is incomprehensible this is somehow the funniest thing I’ve ever seen posted at one of these subs
*But why's the gimpy*
*Guy in the back chewing on*
*The water cooler?*
\- Turbulent\_Notice\_207
---
^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/)
^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
By sheer coincidence, this actually sounds like a sensible if very lame joke. If I'd heard it, I'da thought it was a take on the saying "the bee's knees."
Are you new to Reddit? This happens in every sub, it’s unfortunate but it does. Someone ripped off a post I made months ago and posted it in 4 different subs. This is Reddit.
Wow dam I never knew that??? How long do you gotta be on Reddit to figure that one out??? Two years maybe??? Idk I haven't been on redditit that longgg. Thank you for pointing that out for me I would have never put that together without your veteran help.
I'd assume the misspelling is meant to be how the jokee hears the joker say the punch line. The joker is saying 'An eehive', but when spoken the jokee hears 'A kneehive' hence the confusion.
BINGO. It’s like how an apron used to be called a napron. The English language is weird
Interesting! I didn't know that about the word "apron". I looked that up and learned the name of that word-changing process is [Rebracketing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebracketing). I learned something new! Thanks
Also, a newt used to be called an ewt. Which I find a bit odd because how were they pronouncing ewt? Not like “yoot”??
“Oot” would be my guess.
Only the Canadian ones
The shift to 'newt' was in late Middle English, so it predates the Great Vowel Shift. My ejumacated guess is that it'd have been either \[eʊ\] or \[ɛʊ\] which both shifted to \[juː\], \[eʊ\] matches the 'goat' diphthong from RP, \[ɛʊ\] would be like 'mouth' (/aʊ/ in many dialects) but starting higher (at the 'dress' vowel) so *ew* rather than *ow.*
I thought it was pronounced “an eft” See also “a norange” (went the other way).
How canadians say out?
A hwhat? Did you say "yoot"?
https://preview.redd.it/eohg2b96hfzc1.jpeg?width=474&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c7017ff508ddc425a73e6688981453a67f571bf5
Sure. You blend.
I was thinking exactly of that when I wrote it)
Wouldn’t ert a fly
The two yoots?
[удалено]
Might not explain how it picked up that ‘n’ though. Presumably if it was ‘yoot’ the indefinite article would be ‘a’ and not ‘an’. ‘Oot’ would fit with ‘an’’. And the change in pronunciation from noot to newt possibly followed from the spelling containing ‘new’. All guess work, I don’t know for sure.
Not like what?
Probably the same way we pronounce Ewan
https://tenor.com/baKGl.gif
Interesting that the juvenile version of a newt is called an “eft” while the adult designation has elided into “a newt” the juvenile designation has not also elided into “a neft” It’s still “an eft”
Licorne (unicorn in French) is a crazy example. Unicorne -> une icorne -> l'icorne -> licorne
Pretty sure is also happened with ammunition, French ‘munition’ > la munition > l’ammunition > ammunition
Wait until you hear about unicorn in french. Originally it was “unicorne” like in other languages, but people interpreted that as “un” + “icorne” (an “icorne”), so it became “icorne”. Then, people started interpreting “l’icorne” (the unicorn) as “licorne”, which is the modern French word for unicorn. (So now you could say “un licorne” or “le licorne” for “a unicorn” or “the unicorn” respectively)
Wait ! Is that why we say a "napkin" ?
Napkin is originally a diminutive of ‘nape’. But it seems that both stem from the Latin word ‘mappa’.
Ah, i see. Thanks !
Also, adders were called naedre too.
Used to be your parent’s brother was a “nuncle” too.
I forgot about that!
I heard that's also how a norange became an orange.
Or it's a reference to the bee's knees. So if the bee's are removed, their possessions (knees) are left behind. Which requires less knowledge of unusual English language shenanigans
Fun fact: in the 20s flapper jargon, the phrase "that’s the bee’s knees" used to mean that something is great. Probably a corruption of "business" (if pronounced with dramatic drag-out). Interestingly, the phrase survived longer in Britain than the USA, possibly due to American soldiers being in GB in preparation for D-Day.
No, it’s not a reference to “bees’ knees”, but the fact that **is** a phrase is maybe one of the reasons the guy hears “a knee” instead of “an E”
And it used to be a norange.
Woah this is right. Also, this is awful >_<
That's actually really clever I like that alot ty for help
Well that's just the bees knees isn't it?
Underrated comment.
Have you eaten an onion? Or a nonion?
This makes more sense than what I first thought. I thought it had something to do with the old idiom "the bee's knees." But I couldn't make it work for obvious. 😄
I thought for sure it was supposed to be related to the "you're the bees' knees" way to compliment someone.
[удалено]
Now I have follow up questions, like: why did someone cut it off like that? why did someone *redraw this comic* and add the watercooler guy in the background?
To turn people into the character in the last panel
Is this supposed to be an All Sunny in Philadelphia reference, or am I just jumping to conclusions?
Nobody said anything about Pepe Silva. *Looks around crazily*
"Barney! Give him a cigarette. "
"Barney? Who the hell is Barney?!" *looks around confused*
ha, it was actually a reference to the rest of this comic, as linked at the top of the thread. But i get it, the whole "putting together a conspiracy board" trope has sort of been permanently conquered by the dominance of that Always Sunny meme
Well the implications…
Why wouldn’t someone add Cornholio if they had the ability to?
That is the best part- water cooler guy
That turned it from mediocre comic into art imo
It may have even been the original author, but they cut it down to four frames because that's all that's really needed. Some people will need it explained to them, but that's how some jokes go. The extra frames could just as well have been the "hidden panels".
I disagree, longer version is a better joke and also far more understandable
Just speculation, maybe the guy was added because it went "over his head"
[удалено]
Best explanation yet
HCD 🍰
OK but what about the dude in the background in the edited version
This is getting way more interesting than it needs to be
Just when you think there is no conspiracy .... surprise!
It's a Head & Shoulders popup ads.
Oh I get it. Ee-hive is beehive without the letter B. Damn I'm gonna be such a star at the office watercooler tomorrow.
Just don't chew it
An ee-hive *sounds like* a knee hive
Reminds me of the time I couldn't figure out why a coworker called a dip at the potluck "nazi food" It was not seafood.
I live near a well-known but relatively small, chill theme park called Knott's Berry Farm and frequently go there just to kill an afternoon or whatever. I have to be careful about casually saying things like "hey, let's do Knott's-y stuff this weekend."
nazis, notoriously fans of shrimp and pollock
Thanks dawg.
Oh that makes sense, I was thinking along the lines of "the bees knees" or something.
Bees knees
If you say it out loud it makes sense. We usually slide words together when the first ends with a consonant and the second ends in a vowel, or the same consonant. There's a term for this but I can't remember it. So "an ee-hive" sounds exactly like "a knee-hive" when spoken. But why they changed the original is still a mystery.
Funnily, this happens in real words fairly frequently. We have things called aprons in English; they were originally “a napron” (related to napkin), but people misheard as “an apron” and the change stuck!
*an ee-hive = a knee-hive
i think i like it better this way
The water cooler guy even though was not in the original one, could have also misheard them both and thought they were making fun of him because he is short or something, knee high whatever whatever and leaves Just doesn’t explain why he looks so stupid and tries to bite the water cooler
Phonetically speaking “an eehive” and “a kneehive” sound the same when said aloud. At least in American English, this could be a possible explanation.
I miss it’s the tie
I assume it’s because a knee-hive and “an ee-hive” sound very similar if said out loud and thought the joke would be been with his rendition.
well that sure is, the bees knees.
I thought ot had something to do with the idiom "it's the bee's knees!" Without the bees, it's just a lot of knees.
It's better OP's way.
An eHive Sounds like a knee Hive And when saying a bee Hive it’s “a” not “an”
Made me think of the expression "The Bee's Knees"
It's the Bee's Knees
What about the guy in the back, though? Why is his shirt like that? Why did he bite the water cooler?
Google - Cornholio ( or TP for my bunghole)
Yes, but still, why?
Absurdism, presumably
Let's talk about baseball
You need a new desk
LET ME IN LET ME IN
Nah. I dont really watch baseball. You see the new One Piece episode?
Super off-topic. I have never seen One Piece. But I have been thinking about it. Should I?
I absolutely reccomend it, the animes pacing gets a little rough though so One Pace is also a great way to watch it.
I am enjoying it. Never read a manga or watched another anime in my life unless you count Pokémon.
Was to slow for me, also the characters are a bit one dimensional
Are you threatening me?!
Hehe. Hehe.
Ouwaoooowaaa hah heh... Are you threatening me?
The first thing I thought when I saw the picture was “I am the mighty Cornholio!” It must be our age 🤣
That would be me without this sub. So thanks!
I know it's unintended, but the joke actually works if you read it in a Scottish accent imo, as there is "nae hive".
The Scottish way is one again the right way.
[Might go so far to say](https://youtu.be/bzG_J7RCGS0?si=QQlTBgBfxJ4dQlhB)
Knee and nae sound nothing alike spoken in scottish though. Nae is pronounced "nay"
Nonsense, it only works in a Scottish accent if you replace the word knee with no.
Maybe the comment you were answering to was refering to American Scotch which is americanised Ulster Scots
Isn't there a second part to this comic? I swear I've seen it before. Edit: [Found it. ](https://br.ifunny.co/tags/kneehive)
This needs to be the top comment.
But weirdly, this version does not include cornholio man.
And he's the best part of the comic.
Thank you
Why is cornholio biting the water
To make a bidet for his bunghole.
this is just the first four pannels
A beehive without Bs is an eehive. Mispronounced, it sounds like a kneehive
There's a lot more to this comic, the main character goes into a spiral trying to figure out what a kneehive is, finally asking the joke teller, who confirms that he meant "An Eehive."
I was gonna say something maybe about the bees knees?
This is what I was thinking to! “The bee’s knees!” but now it’s just knees
better question. wtf is the dude in the background doing
Living his best life
He’s trying his best, Jerry!
https://preview.redd.it/8qtmk7g9xgzc1.png?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=47c7f7ee38d87bda051b4246ab2d16b7b9b84d40
Wish there was a way to pin this.
Late to the party. Had to make a stop.
Bee hive minus b equals an eehive (a kneehive)
“An eehive.” I’m still not sure they’re getting it. 🚀
Also is the guy in the background “chewing the scenery?” Like upstaging the foreground people?
Accidental Sumerian joke spotting
“An Eehive” = “a kneehive” phonetically? Joke is drawn in the perspective of the guy hearing the joke. And he doesn’t get it
Did you add the guy in the background OP? That was too funny.
I did not
No one in the comments get it
Top comment nailed it. The rest didn't
Eh, did you know what the joke was supposed to be?
No hence why I asked
So how do you know who nailed it and who didn’t?
Because he commented a link to the rest of the comic. Apparently this was just a portion of it.
This feels like a play on the banal anonymity bred into corporate culture. Man B makes terrible joke, stealing much of the stale airtime of the place. Meanwhile, man C scuttles around unnoticed, biting water coolers in a fret of madness. Man A, in a moment of lucidity, sees it all and descends into gentle confusion. And on and on goes the office grind.
The replies to this have become the missing panels.
This one is incomplete, that's the [full comic.](https://www.reddit.com/r/funny/comments/5h05r9/pun/)
Maybe im overthinking but… I think the person that posted it is a troll. Obviously the joke is that the guy goes crazy trying to get the joke. Whoever made this cuts out the punchline (the final panels)….so people who see this go crazy trying to understand it. They add the guy at the watercooler to make sure you dont think they accidentally cropped the punch line. Its on purpose. Thats my take.
Eh. There is more to this comic BUT people here recognized the punchline. It’s an Eehive, but he misheaed it.
My initial take was using the phrase, "the bees knees" and if you take out the bee there, you just get "the knee" so then without bees in a hive, you just have knees in a hive and you get the "knee hive"
I don’t know what you all are on about in this thread this comic literally is incomprehensible this is somehow the funniest thing I’ve ever seen posted at one of these subs
i just vibe with the backround dude
Same
Hmmm. Not Loss, not Gonna be May, not sex (I hope). No clue. Internet meme knowledge, you have failed me!
This joke is the bee's knees
Maybe “bees knees” reference? I don’t know, stretching
Who is the man biting the water tank?
Cornholio
For some reason I just thought "bees knees" but that doesn't make sense either lol
I just want to know what's the deal with the guy in the background
I immediately thought the joke was referencing "bee's knees" which is what u call someone when they're an excellent person.
But why's the gimpy guy in the back chewing on the water cooler?
*But why's the gimpy* *Guy in the back chewing on* *The water cooler?* \- Turbulent\_Notice\_207 --- ^(I detect haikus. And sometimes, successfully.) ^[Learn more about me.](https://www.reddit.com/r/haikusbot/) ^(Opt out of replies: "haikusbot opt out" | Delete my comment: "haikusbot delete")
Never mind the joke. What’s Cornholio doing back there?
Well ya see that hive is the bee's knees, but without the bees, it's just the knees.
By sheer coincidence, this actually sounds like a sensible if very lame joke. If I'd heard it, I'da thought it was a take on the saying "the bee's knees."
Because the k in knee is silent.
Isn’t the joke here that bees don’t have knees?
I swear people just be posting stuff on this subreddit for free karma
I legitimately didn't get it
Are you new to Reddit? This happens in every sub, it’s unfortunate but it does. Someone ripped off a post I made months ago and posted it in 4 different subs. This is Reddit.
Wow dam I never knew that??? How long do you gotta be on Reddit to figure that one out??? Two years maybe??? Idk I haven't been on redditit that longgg. Thank you for pointing that out for me I would have never put that together without your veteran help.
Cow tools 2.0
The bees knees?
Because it starts with a vowel, instead of “A Beehive” it’s now “An Eehive” so the guy hears “A Kneehive”
He's saying 'an eehive' but the listener is mishearing him and linking the 'n' sound in an to beehive, so it sounds like 'a neehive'
Lots of posters excluding half a comic to garner conversation for karma I think.
Bees don't have knees, so if you take the bees away the knees are free to return?
The bee’s knees
As in this joke is the bee’s knees. Y’all need to get on the trolley because this thread is the pits.
The "bees knees" meant something so amazing that it shouldn't exist Because bees don't have knees.