take a joke

Idioms  

1. Accept teasing at one's own expense, as in Sam really couldn't take a joke. This idiom, often put negatively, was first recorded in 1780. Also see take it.

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Example Sentences

“We as conservatives need to be able to take a joke,” he told Fox in late July.

From Los Angeles Times

“We as conservatives should be able to take a joke; we shouldn’t take ourselves so seriously.”

From Salon

The short-lived newlyweds “took a joke too far by getting married,” her record label said in a statement at the time.

From Los Angeles Times

The lawsuit, he said, had been an attempt “to ruin us financially and destroy our ability to offer commentary critical of organizations like theirs — all because they can’t take a joke.”

From New York Times

“He can take a joke, and he can give a joke,” Lewis said.

From Los Angeles Times