<p><code>以前没钱  买华为</code>
I had no money before, so I bought Huawei （It shows Huawei was cheap</p>
<p><code>现在 没钱买华为</code>
Now I have no money to buy Huawei （It shows Huawei is expensive)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-17T02:19:50.017Z
Could it be that Huawei was so expensive that I could not afford it, but now even poor people are able to buy one because it becomes cheap--Simply put, the reverse of what you said, because it could be explained in either way?
NanningYouth
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-13T09:27:59.997Z
2021-07-13T09:36:24.203Z
2021-07-13T09:36:24.203Z
nicholas
<p>This joke illustrated how punctuation can change the meaning of a sentence</p>
<p>At a glance 以前没钱买华为，现在没钱买华为 means &quot;I don't have money to buy a Huawei phone in the past and I still don't have money to buy one now&quot;. It is a standard way to interpret a sentence like this, but we knew it is a joke, there must be some twist between the words</p>
<p>With punctuation, the meaning of the sentence is changed and that's the pun</p>
<p>以前没钱，买华为 = I was poor before, so I bought a Huawei phone (It was cheap)</p>
<p>现在， 没钱买华为 = Now, I can't afford to buy a Huawei phone (it is expensive)</p>
<p>Orally, you have to pause at the right places to get the pun</p>
<p>以前没钱  买华为</p>
<p>现在  没钱买华为</p>
<p>Another example I often use</p>
<blockquote>
<p>下雨天留客 (rainy day keep the guest here)</p>
</blockquote>
<blockquote>
<p>天留人不留 (but the host wouldn't let the guest stay)</p>
</blockquote>
<p>~</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;下雨天，留客天。留人不？ 留!&quot;(&quot;It is a rainy day, a day to keep the guest here. Do I keep the guest? I do!&quot;)</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-13T16:35:39.030Z
2021-07-13T17:12:07.720Z
2021-07-13T17:12:07.720Z
Tang Ho
<p>以前没钱（所以我）买华为 (Huawei used to be very affordable and low end)
现在没（足够的）钱买华为 (not any more….)</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-14T08:05:31.450Z
2021-07-14T08:05:31.450Z
J.Q. Tian
<p>I hear people say  &quot;以前没钱买华为，现在没钱买华为&quot;, in which 华为 is the brand name of a mobile phone, and I understand this pun (if so) tries to illustrate the development of this brand but do not really get the hang.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-07-13T10:25:05.077Z
It's more obvious if we add couple of words: 以前(因为)没钱(所以)买华为 - cheap，现在没(那么多)钱买华为 - expensive。
dan
<sentence>
What does the pun "以前没钱买华为” mean?
# What does the pun "以前没钱买华为” mean?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-07-13)

I hear people say "以前没钱买华为，现在没钱买华为", in which 华为 is the brand name of a mobile phone, and I understand this pun (if so) tries to illustrate the development of this brand but do not really get the hang.

**Tags:** sentence

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: It's more obvious if we add couple of words: 以前(因为)没钱(所以)买华为 - cheap，现在没(那么多)钱买华为 - expensive。  

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## 3 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2021-07-13. Score: 8

`以前没钱 买华为`
I had no money before, so I bought Huawei （It shows Huawei was cheap

`现在 没钱买华为`
Now I have no money to buy Huawei （It shows Huawei is expensive)

> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: Could it be that Huawei was so expensive that I could not afford it, but now even poor people are able to buy one because it becomes cheap--Simply put, the reverse of what you said, because it could be explained in either way?  

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### Answer by username_3 on 2021-07-13. Score: 1

This joke illustrated how punctuation can change the meaning of a sentence

At a glance 以前没钱买华为，现在没钱买华为 means "I don't have money to buy a Huawei phone in the past and I still don't have money to buy one now". It is a standard way to interpret a sentence like this, but we knew it is a joke, there must be some twist between the words

With punctuation, the meaning of the sentence is changed and that's the pun

以前没钱，买华为 = I was poor before, so I bought a Huawei phone (It was cheap)

现在， 没钱买华为 = Now, I can't afford to buy a Huawei phone (it is expensive)

Orally, you have to pause at the right places to get the pun

以前没钱 买华为

现在 没钱买华为

Another example I often use

> 下雨天留客 (rainy day keep the guest here)

> 天留人不留 (but the host wouldn't let the guest stay)

~

> "下雨天，留客天。留人不？ 留!"("It is a rainy day, a day to keep the guest here. Do I keep the guest? I do!")


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### Answer by username_4 on 2021-07-14. Score: 0

以前没钱（所以我）买华为 (Huawei used to be very affordable and low end)
现在没（足够的）钱买华为 (not any more….)


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