That isn’t the part that’s supposed to be funny, though. The joke is fundamentally about the linguistic ambiguity of “would you like to dance” typically implying “with me”. It’s something most people take for granted. So like, presented in a standup format the joke would be something like:
“Have you ever noticed that if someone asks you if you’d like to dance… They’re not saying anything about dancing together? (Audience chuckles)”
You could even structure the joke in such a way that it doesn’t involve someone being a jerk, maybe you’d find that more palatable. E.g:
“So anyways, one time at the club this gorgeous lady asks me if I’d like to dance. And I’m thinking, well, sure I guess. So I went up to the floor and started… (Comedian dances ridiculously, audience laughs). And when I look back at her she looks at me like I just killed her dog or something! (Audience in shambles) and that’s when I realized… Oh! You meant like… (Comedian points back and forth between himself and audience)…together? Well why didn’t you just say so?! (Audience collectively dies from laughter)”
If you couldn’t tell I don’t really like standup, lol. But the point is that the joke isn’t about misleading someone or being a jerk. Its fundamentally a language joke.
That isn’t the part that’s supposed to be funny, though. The joke is fundamentally about the linguistic ambiguity of “would you like to dance” typically implying “with me”. It’s something most people take for granted. So like, presented in a standup format the joke would be something like:
“Have you ever noticed that if someone asks you if you’d like to dance… They’re not saying anything about dancing together? (Audience chuckles)”
You could even structure the joke in such a way that it doesn’t involve someone being a jerk, maybe you’d find that more palatable. E.g:
“So anyways, one time at the club this gorgeous lady asks me if I’d like to dance. And I’m thinking, well, sure I guess. So I went up to the floor and started… (Comedian dances ridiculously, audience laughs). And when I look back at her she looks at me like I just killed her dog or something! (Audience in shambles) and that’s when I realized… Oh! You meant like… (Comedian points back and forth between himself and audience)…together? Well why didn’t you just say so?! (Audience collectively dies from laughter)”
If you couldn’t tell I don’t really like standup, lol. But the point is that the joke isn’t about misleading someone or being a jerk. Its fundamentally a language joke.