40 Hilarious Memes To Tickle Your Funny Bone

In today's digital era, where information travels at warp speed and Apple's new luxurious VR goggles (only for $3500!) just begs to be made fun of, a curious cultural phenomenon has captured our collective imagination, transcending language, age and class — memes. These seemingly innocuous images, videos, or text snippets, infused with wit and humor, have woven their way into the very fabric of existence, not only online but in real life as well.

In a recent post, Adam Downer, the editor of 'Know Your Meme', explained to Bored Panda that, "The best way for a meme to work is to have it be applicable to a wide array of situations, and it needs to be able to transcend its original context. Oftentimes, you'll see people clamoring over a 'new meme' that is really just jokes about one pop culture reference."

The power of memes, then, lies in their versatility. They act as cultural mirrors, reflecting society's quirks, foibles, and prevailing trends. By poking fun at our collective obsessions, they offer a sense of camaraderie and validation.

Just think of all the times you have seen a memed-out Elon Musk (who appears not to mind it) or some clunky technology that was just begging to be made fun of. Surprisingly, we have come to a point when there's no point in counting just how many memes we are blessed with every day.

According to the BBC, the term "meme" was introduced by renowned evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins in 1976. Drawing inspiration from the Greek word "mimeme" (which sounds a bit like Trump's brain-child "confefe"), Dawkins sought to elucidate the concept of discrete cultural units that replicate and spread among individuals, much like genes. In an act of linguistic creativity, he shortened "mimeme" to "meme," which conveniently rhymed with "cream." Dawkins proposed that memes encompassed melodies, ideas, catchphrases, or fragments of information that leap from one mind to another through imitation, facilitating their transmission.

Researchers at Facebook, for example, showed just how fast memes can spread and evolve. They found more than 121,000 different variants of one particular meme posted across more than 1 million status updates. Come to think of it, it's not so crazy to hear something like this in today's day and age. But we're talking about the age of "dogge" and other classical memes that paved the way for a whole new appreciation of this internet phenomenon.

In essence, though, the fascination with memes can be attributed to their ability to entertain, connect, and provoke thought. Not only do they offer a form of cultural shorthand that binds us together but also offer a unique way for self-expression – something that is evident in the popularity of meme hubs like today‘s meme sponsor.