We’ve all seen the hilarious Tumblr text posts floating around the internet lately. The witty banter, the punny jokes, and the careful use of gifs all make for the perfect comedic effect. If you’re a Tumblr user and you want to write some playful banter as a reply to someone or in a text post of your own, you can learn how in no time. In this article, we’ll tell you all the tips and tricks you need to come up with playful banter on your own (and we’ll even give you some examples you can use).
Mess with the audience’s expectations.
Think about what your readers expect, then deviate from that.
Subverting your followers’ expectations is a great way to keep them on their toes, and they’ll probably enjoy the way you messed with their heads. Try to think of what they assume you’re going to type next, then veer away from it just slightly.
- “I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that I’m going to be logging off for a while. But the good news is also that I’ll be logging off for a while.”Normally, your good news and your bad news would be different. By making them the exact same thing, you’re surprising your audience with something they didn’t expect.
- Normally, your good news and your bad news would be different. By making them the exact same thing, you’re surprising your audience with something they didn’t expect.
- “A man, a horse, and a scarecrow walk into a bar. They all say, ‘Ouch!’”Typically, jokes like these end with the characters interacting within a bar or restaurant. By taking the word “bar” and using the other definition (a long rod or a piece of wood), you’re flipping the script and surprising your audience.
- Typically, jokes like these end with the characters interacting within a bar or restaurant. By taking the word “bar” and using the other definition (a long rod or a piece of wood), you’re flipping the script and surprising your audience.
Exaggerate wildly.
Use hyperbole to complain excessively about a small problem.
If you’re experiencing a minor inconvenience, use a Tumblr text post to rant about how awful and life-threatening it is. The more dramatic you can be, the better (and more relatable) your text post is.
- “The sun is out today. I’ve never been so hot in my life. If I take one step outside, my feet are going to melt off. I say we abolish the sun.”
- “I’ve been on hold for 30 whole seconds. If I pass away, please tell my family that I love them.”
Do some word play.
Make your followers groan with a good pun.
Spend some time racking your brain for a pun that would make people laugh, smile, or even get a little angry. Don’t be surprised if people reblog your post saying how much they hate it (in an admiring way).
- “What do you call a snobby criminal going down the stairs? A condescending con descending.”
- “The duck said to the bartender, ‘Put it on my bill.’”
Use gifs to enhance your message.
Add gifs to attract the eye and add a visual element to your text.
Tumblr has tons of funny gifs to choose from, and you can search through them to pick something that enhances your joke. You could even use a gif as a reply to someone—for instance, if they call you out or insult you, you might insert a gif of someone running away and hiding.
- Gifs are fun, but stick to 1 gif per post. Using too many can be overwhelming, and they could detract instead of add to your post.
Take an expression literally.
Misread something and comment about it to mess with the original poster.
If you come across a text post that can be easily misread, reply to it like you don’t understand what the person is saying. Try to make it sound intentional so that people understand it’s a joke rather than an actual misunderstanding.
- Tumblr user: “He’s as happy as a clam.”
- You: “I’ve never seen a clam smile. He can’t be that happy.”
Make a joke during a high-stress moment.
Reply to someone’s stressful post with a joke to defuse the situation.
On Tumblr, you’ll often see people making posts in all caps about how stressed they are or how much homework they have to do. You can reply to their post with a pun or a silly joke to make them laugh (but also make them groan).
- Tumblr user: “So stressed out right now omg. I think we might have a pop quiz tomorrow.”
- You: “Don’t let that pop quiz burst your bubble!”
Tease someone in a flirty way.
Playfully tease someone that you know well, but be nice about it.
Teasing someone online can be a little risky, since it’s hard to read tone via text. However, if you know this person IRL or you’ve chatted with them a lot before, try playfully bantering with them on a text post for some funny back and forth.
- Tumblr user: “I skipped the gym today. I’m such a failure.”
- You: “Wow. All your strength is gone. Who’s going to sweep me off my feet now?”
- Tumblr user: “I just can’t stand Twilight.”
- You: “Wow, a Twilight hater? We definitely can’t be friends now.”
Try double entendres.
Call attention to a word that has a double meaning in a post.
If you stumble across a text post that has a slightly flirtatious vibe to it, try calling attention to that by pointing out the double meaning. If you do this successfully, you’ll probably flatter the original poster while also looking super smooth.
- Tumblr user: “You’re just trying to butter me up.”
- You: “I think I’m on a roll.”“Roll” can mean both the bread (that you put butter on) or being on a roll (experiencing a lot of luck or success).
- “Roll” can mean both the bread (that you put butter on) or being on a roll (experiencing a lot of luck or success).
Add hashtags to your post for more visibility.
Help other people find your posts to get more reblogs.
Before you publish a text post, head into the hashtags section and add a few general tags that relate to your post. This will help your content show up for more people, and you can reach a wider audience than just your immediate followers.
- For instance, if you wrote a post about how cute your cat is, you might tag it with: #cat, #cutecat, #catpost, and #catpicture.
- If you post something about school, you could tag it with: #school, #highschool, #schoolproblems, or #student.
Keep it lighthearted and casual.
Try not to take things too seriously to show that you’re joking.
Don’t try to insult someone or make them feel bad; instead, focus on making yourself (and your followers) laugh. Remember, you’re writing this out online, so something that sounds sarcastic and witty to you could come across as unnecessarily mean in a text post.
- For instance, something like, “Whoa, what happened to your hair?” in response to someone’s new haircut might be meant as a playful tease, but online, it could just be seen as cruel.
- Instead, you could try something like, “Did you get a new haircut or just dye the ends invisible?” It’s a joke that will make people laugh, but it’s not rude or mean.