Last weekend, I was helping my parents do some early morning shopping (as one does). Of course, in true boomer fashion, we eschewed the abhorrent self-checkout (as one certainly does not do) and instead opted for the over-caffeinated, underpaid human cashier instead.

Too busy placing a much-needed Dunkin’ order on my mobile app, I nearly missed when the cashier asked my dad if he wanted his milk in a bag. 

Without missing a beat, dear old Dad of course replied, "No thanks, I'll keep it in the carton." 

That Specific Look from my long-suffering, god-fearing mother would have been enough to silence all of us as kids; but of course, it only encouraged Dad to double down. I’ll spare you the rest, since I couldn’t do the same for the poor cashier.

But that’s the thing about dad jokes – they aren’t just puns and one-line zingers. They're a way of life, a rite of passage. 

(They're also the verbal equivalent of wearing socks with sandals: Essential to the dad experience, and so very, very uncool.)

That said, dad jokes occupy a special place in the finely balanced comedy ecosystem. They're the comfort food of humor, for those of us who grew up hearing them, and that is the secret of their charming brilliance. 

Our Favorite Dad Jokes

At Witty Yeti, our weakness for witty wordplay has only grown with time. Here are a few dad jokes we love.

1. "What do you call a sleeping bull? A bulldozer!”

2. “I made a pencil with two erasers. It was pointless.”

3. "What do you call a bear in the rain? A drizzly bear!" 

4. "I'm terrified of elevators, so I'm going to start taking steps to avoid them." 

5. "What do you call a bunch of rabbits hopping backwards? A receding hare line!" 

The Science Behind the Silliness

What makes these jokes so bad they’re good? It's the commitment to the bit. 

Because in a world of uncertainty, all of us want to know we can always count on our parents. Even if it’s just counting on being mortally embarrassed in the checkout line every Saturday at 8:15 A.M.

(“Hey embarrassed, I’m Dad.”)