sight gag

American  

noun

1. a comic effect produced by visual means rather than by spoken lines, as in a play or motion picture.

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Etymology

Origin of sight gag

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

Woven throughout the show’s jokes and sight gags was a laugh track—a first in American television—to “sweeten” the material and cue viewers at home when something was funny.

From The Wall Street Journal

Younger kids might be disturbed by the depictions of mild danger, but there are also plenty of sight gags and stunning visual scenes to distract.

From Salon

Robinson and Kanin find a conceit, whether it’s a sight gag or a scenario, and keep escalating the ridiculousness of it well past the standard threshold of appropriateness.

From Salon

But the film noir lighting on Anderson’s eyes is spot-on, as are two sight gags that are built around the set’s extreme shadows.

From Los Angeles Times

Unfortunately, the way she’s deployed as a sight gag makes it hard to take her seriously when it counts.

From Los Angeles Times