What's the difference between a well-dressed man on a bicycle and a poorly dressed man on a unicycle?

This "What's the difference?" gag pulls a classic comedic trick: the delightful homophone pun. The setup cleverly lays out two distinct puzzles: first, the obvious contrast (Review) in clothing between a "well-dressed" and "poorly dressed" man, and second, the number of wheels on their respective rides – a bicycle versus a unicycle. The punchline, a single word, then brilliantly ties both threads together with a linguistic knot.

"Attire" works on two levels, which is where the magic happens. It directly answers the question of their sartorial choices, explaining the difference in their clothing. But spoken aloud, it also sounds exactly like "a tire," slyly pointing to the difference in the number of wheels (two for a bike, one for a unicycle). This kind of clever wordplay, where a single sound unlocks multiple meanings, has been a cornerstone of humor for centuries, proving that sometimes, the funniest jokes are just a matter of pronunciation. It's a testament to language's playful side.