bad pun; corny joke; feeble joke
A pun or wordplay that is considered lame, corny, or groan-inducing. Often elicits a reaction like 'that's so bad it's funny'.
See also: 洒落
His puns are always so lame.
My dad always makes corny puns, to the family's dismay.
父は食卓でよくダジャレを言って、家族を苦笑いさせる。
My dad often tells corny jokes at the dinner table, making the family wryly smile.
He cracked a corny pun during the meeting to lighten the mood.
Everyone couldn't help laughing at his corny pun.
ギャグ is a broader term for a joke or gag (often visual or physical), while 駄洒落 is specifically a corny wordplay pun.
冗談 is a general word for a joke of any kind, while 駄洒落 refers narrowly to a lame pun based on wordplay.
Usually written in kana; the kanji spelling 駄洒落 is also used but less common.
Katakana spelling, often used for emphasis or in casual writing.
Kanji spelling; 駄 means 'poor' or 'cheap', 洒落 is from しゃれ (pun).
Compound of 駄 (da, 'poor, cheap') + 洒落 (share, 'pun, witticism'). The reading じゃれ is a voiced variant of しゃれ.