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"offense"
Wordplay
Act 3,
Scene 2
Lines 217-218

An explanation of the pun on “offense” in Act 3, Scene 2 of myShakespeare’s Hamlet.

Claudius

Have you heard the argument? Is there no offense in't? 

Hamlet

No, no, they do but jest, poison in jest, no offense i'th' world.

In these lines, Hamlet makes a pun on Claudius’ use of the word “offense”:

  • An offense can be something indecent or violating good manners (Claudius’s meaning).
  • Or it might refer to the crime portrayed by the actors (Hamlet’s meaning).