Pun therapy in linguistic education

The research paper explores the concept of pun therapy as a linguistic and educational tool in teaching students specializing in linguistics. The study aims to describe the multifunctional nature of pun therapy in linguistic education and to propose materials for studying pun in translation courses. The researchidentifies various applications of pun in linguistic education including pun as linguistic studies (examining lexico-semantic and syntactic means of pun creation: such as homonymy, paronymy, polysemy, syllable regrouping, etc.), pun and its translation (distinguishing between translatable and untranslatable pun, and exploring compensatory methods for translating untranslatable pun), pun in literature and advertising, pun as relaxation, wordplay as a method for pronunciation correction, pun as a means of self-presentation.Pun therapy is represented as a type of wordplay therapy or verbal humour therapy with significant linguistic and educational potential. It contributes to motivation for studies, creates a positive emotional atmosphere in communication and interaction between a teacher and students. The research draws ontheoretical issues related to humour and laughter as therapy, humour in education, and practical resources, such as books containing puns which can be used in teaching and studying pun for students of linguistic specialities. The methods employed in the study include lexico-semantic analysis of pun creation and functional analysis of pun in teaching. The study emphasizes the beneficial influence of pun in both teaching and learning contexts.