standing joke

Idioms and Phrases

Something that is always funny even though it is often repeated. For example, Mary's “Dennis who?” when her husband is mentioned is a standing joke around here . This idiom employs standing in the sense of “established” or “regular,” a usage dating from the mid-1500s.

Example Sentences

In the Boeing corridors, the standing joke was that “McDonnell Douglas bought Boeing with Boeing’s money.”

From Los Angeles Times

"It is a sort of standing joke with Leeds fans that we always get two cup ties a season - one in the League Cup, and one in the FA Cup - before we get knocked out," Rix explained.

From BBC

“Comstockery is the world’s standing joke at the expense of the United States,” Shaw commented.

From Los Angeles Times

Former president Donald Trump spoke so often about rebuilding roads and bridges that his “infrastructure weeks” became a standing joke.

From Washington Post

A standing joke was that if Washington’s statue could talk, the great man would say, “Here is my sword; my clothes are at the Patent Office.”

From Washington Post