One day, an English poet, a Portuguese poet, an Italian poet, and German poet were all walking in the garden.

Xxx “I believe,” said the Englishman, “that if one were to judge by the sound alone, then butterfly would be the most beautiful word in the English language. Just listen to the pure sound of the word—butterfly.”

Xxx The Portuguese poet was astounded. “Amazing!” she said. “For years I have held the same opinion about that word in our language—mariposa. The word just rolls off one’s lips—mare ih POZE ah!”

Xxx “This is more than coincidence!” exclaimed the Italian. “The word in Italian is Lepidoptra. Just listen to that word! The mere sound of it denotes beauty!”

Xxx Then the three of them fell silent and turned to the German. The German shrugged his shoulders and said, “Das SCHMETTERLINK.”

About this Joke:

Why do some people find this joke funny?

Why do certain words sound better to us than other words?

Would the same words that sound good or bad to us sound good or bad to a person that grew up speaking Arabic or Han Chinese?

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