Abstract
The purpose of this study is to analyze the linguistic levels and functions of language play in the subtitles of TV entertainment programs, which have not been well studied in the field of language education, and to suggest pedagogical implications. For this purpose, 475 subtitles containing language plays in 36 TV entertainment programs were extracted and categorized into the following types: Use of homophones and similar sounds, Sound repetition, Syllable substitution and addition, Transformation of existing texts, Utilize the spacing, Antithesis, Three-line acrostic poem, Use of homophones and polysemy, use of Chinese characters, abbreviations and Paraphrasing, visual pun. As a result, we found that in addition to its basic function of making people laugh, language play in subtitles also plays a role in drawing the viewer's attention and emphasizing the content to be conveyed, and even in covertly presenting sensitive or taboo expressions. Based on these findings, we concluded that language humor in subtitles can be used to enhance learners' linguistic and cultural knowledge, meta-linguistic awareness and multimodal literacy, and can be used as a language assessment tool.
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