" Am I in time for supper?" - "I've cleared the table."
More examples: "Who was that man I saw you with?" - "My mother's husband."
Example 1 – Sheldon in Penny’s restaurant 4:13
Scene: Penny asks the group: “Hey. So, you guys ready to order?”
Sheldon’s reply: “Since we come in every Tuesday night at 6:00 and order the same exact thing and it’s now 6:08. I believe your question not only answers itself but also stands alongside such other nonsensical queries as ‘Who let the dogs out?’ And, uh, ‘How are they hanging?’”
Why it flouts quantity: Rather than simply answering “Yes,” Sheldon provides excessive background and irrelevant commentary—far more information than Penny asked for.
Maxim of Quality (Truthfulness)
Example 1 – Sheldon on Archies comics 4:11
Scene: In the comic book store, Zack asks: “Where do they keep the Archies?”
Sheldon’s reply: “In the bedroom of ten‑year‑old girls, where they belong.”
Why it flouts quality: This response is a false, stereotyped, and insulting assumption about the comics’ audience—said for comic effect.
Example 2 – Penny's exaggerated image 3:2
Scene: Penny says, “Okay, yeah, well, I’m just gonna go eat my dinner elsewhere. Maybe an airplane headed for a mountainside.”
Why it flouts quality: She’s obviously not literally flying to a mountain just to avoid dinner—it's a hyperbolic expression of avoidance.
Example 3 – Howard’s “old salt mines” 3:10
Scene: Howard says to Bernadette, “Thought I’d give the little woman a tour of the old salt mines.”
Why it flouts quality: The “old salt mines” is a metaphor for his workplace, not literally a mine—this creative exaggeration violates truthfulness for humorous effect.
Example 1 – Leonard the sidekick 4:10
Scene: Howard asks, “Of the two of us, who’s the obvious sidekick?” Leonard responds, “12 years after high school, and I’m still at the nerd table.”
Why it flouts relevance: His answer is not a direct answer to the question—it’s a grim joke about his own social standing, redirecting relevance for comedic impact.
Example 2 – Sheldon, physicist vs hippie 4:5
Scene: When Leonard suggests Sheldon tell Amy how he feels, Sheldon replies, “Leonard, I’m a physicist, not a hippie.”
Why it flouts relevance: Instead of responding to the emotional advice, Sheldon pivots to a joke about his identity—making the remark irrelevant to Leonard’s intent.
Example 1 – Sheldon on pizza and stairs 4:9
Scene: Sheldon is told the elevator is out and responds: “Pizza dates back to the 16th century, while the first elevator was not installed until 1852. That means that over 300 years, people carried pizzas upstairs. Be part of that proud tradition.”
Why it flouts manner: Instead of simply saying “you’ll have to use the stairs,” Sheldon offers a long, roundabout, and humorous historical digression—unnecessarily verbose and indirect.
Example 2 – Sheldon on Invasion of the Body Snatchers 4:5
Scene: Leonard asks how he looks; Sheldon replies, “As if one of the plants from Invasion of the Body Snatchers duplicated you in every way, only with an absurd amount of hair gel.”
Why it flouts manner: The description is imaginative but obscure—it’s not simple or clear, and leaves the listener to parse the analogy for meaning.