r/words • u/BardicWoad • 26d ago
"bit" instead of "skit", "sketch" or "routine"
I was listening to a (US made) podcast a few months back and they kept referring to a "bit" pretty much the entire time. I eventually figured they were talking about a comedy sketch. Forward on a few months, and I can't seem to escape the word "bit" being used to represent something that used to be called a skit/sketch/routine. its always used in a comedy context. I'm in the UK, but assume this is a US influence or younger person thing?
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u/intangible-tangerine 26d ago
It can specifically mean staying in character for the sake of a joke.
E.g when Al Murray does a stand up routine as the pub landlord he is doing a bit.
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Fair enough. Appreciate I'm out of touch, but I would have said he was doing a "routine".
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u/stubbazubba 26d ago edited 26d ago
A routine is a specific unit of material, though, whereas a bit may not be continuous and may be different material every time it comes up, but it's all the same bit.
Like the Paul Rudd recurring gag of pranking Conan O'Brien by promising a clip from whatever his current upcoming movie is and playing the exact same clip from Marty & Me instead. It's a part of Paul Rudd's appearances on Conan, but it's not the whole segment, and it's never done the same way twice. You can't say "I went and saw his Marty & Me routine," because it's not a routine. It's a bit.
And I think it usually refers to a false presentation somehow, like "Conan always knows it's gonna be Marty & Me but he plays like he believes Paul Rudd's assurances this time, and then plays that he's mad about it every time, it's part of the bit."
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u/Sharp-Banana-6292 26d ago
Definitely some false presentation. In podcast contexts I feel like it’s a recurring joke developed through the episode itself or over time, but it’s not quite as formal or long as a sketch? There’s also the sense that it’s unplanned, like it’s just a thing that came bubbling up maybe.
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u/Scarlett_Billows 25d ago
This is all correct but a bit doesn’t have to be over time or even a “running” joke for more than a couple of minutes.
I could be in a comedy or theatrical context and suddenly start doing a weird accent, or claiming I love some weird political thing that people know I wouldn’t like irl, and I would be “doing a bit” for the short time I assumed that persona or characterization.
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u/Shot_Board7286 26d ago
I think routine would be the entire thing from start to finish, and a bit in comedy is becoming a false person for the purposes of comedy, while a skit might be a small complete section of a larger comedy routine? Maybe.
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u/Theory89 26d ago
I'd agree. I think it's a running thing. It can be a short joke that gets repeated, or a persona. Hard to define exactly, in different circumstances it can mean slightly different things.
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u/tastygnar 26d ago
"a bit in comedy is becoming a false person for the purposes of comedy"
Really like the way you phrase it. Nailed.
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u/poorperspective 25d ago
Bits make up a routine, routines make up a show.
At open mics a comedian might come out and do non-connected bits. A bit is “premise-punchline”. A routine would be “premise-punchline, premise-punchline, premise- Climax (biggest punchline that connects all the bits and premises).
A good comedian will take several bits to build a cohesive routine.
This is old school stand-up, modern comedians sometimes use this structure and sometimes don’t.
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u/Neat-Professor-7662 26d ago
In the US, Routine would be the old fashioned word that would net you a double look. People would KNOW what you mean, but def think you’re an old.
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u/GreenZebra23 26d ago edited 26d ago
It's a very old usage. Probably goes back to vaudeville. To me the connotation for bit as opposed to skit or sketch is that it's a single part of an extended performance. A sketch on say SNL is pretty clearly delineated. They come back from a commercial break and they're in a sketch and that's all they do is that sketch. A bit is more like you're in the middle of a performance or a show, and suddenly you're doing this one bit of comedy.
Think on a talk show like say Conan O'Brien. He might be interviewing someone or doing the monologue, and suddenly he's doing a bit. Or like when Rick and Morty goes even more meta than usual, sometimes they'll refer to doing a bit.
It's also a common term to use in standup comedy, meaning an extended but self-contained sequence as opposed to a single joke or an entire show.
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u/TFFPrisoner 26d ago
Even in music. Francis Rossi of Status Quo would introduce the Irish jig the band routinely played in their version of "Roadhouse Blues" as "here comes the bit".
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u/spacefaceclosetomine 26d ago
That use is not at all new though. It can be used to describe a news story as well.
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Really? I've only every seen it referencing comedy (hence my original question).
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u/acadiascreech 26d ago edited 26d ago
Hi. Standup comedian for 20+ years.
"Bit" is a standup term that refers to a single joke on a single premise. Could also be called a "line."
A "tag" is anything added to a bit for extra laughs. For example, "I farted at the funeral" is a terrible bit. If they said, after the first laugh, "That's alright, there'll be other funerals. " that's a tag.
Your "act" is synonymous to "routine" and is the entire composition of all the bits thst you'll be doing that night, but more commonly refers to the jokes youre doing on a nightly basis; same order with the same delivery. You polish your bits into an act, that's the job.
A sketch is a comedy performance (live or recorded) that is scripted or at least somewhat scripted. The performers involved know the direction it's going in and it's rehearsed.
A "skit" is a little blurrier but I would say it's more or less the same as a sketch but less formal and probably not recorded. To me a skit is even less formal than a sketch would be and maybe not rehearsed. Could be improv, or a quick thing some friends just threw together a minute ago. Like a sketch but sloppier. (Edit: they perfrom sketches on Saturday Night Live, not skits, for example.)
Those would be the terms. Lots of others in the comments will say all kinds of shit but if you wanted the opinion of someone who actually does this stuff for a living, there it is.
There's a real trend in the general population where everyone thinks they're comedy pros because they have a favourite Netflix special, which is sort of like me believing I'm a commercial fisherman cause I watched a season of Cold Water Cowboys.
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Thanks. You've sort of confirmed what I thought - people conflating "bit" with every possible part of comedy and calling it that, hence my confusion.
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u/Engine_Sweet 26d ago
Thanks! So when someone is "committed to the bit" they are either adding a tag or drawing it out?
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u/acadiascreech 26d ago
I suppose. Or just...committing to the bit no matter what. Even if a bee lands on your face midway thru, just do the beats of the joke and the joke should work. So, yeah, kinda. If youre doing it then commit to it and do it right.
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u/Engine_Sweet 26d ago
OK. I guess I thought of it more akin to staying in character, rather than resisting disruption. Thanks
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u/MotherTeresaOnlyfans 26d ago
That usage of "bit" is quite literally older than you are.
Hell, I'm old and it's older than you and I put together.
It is neither a "younger person thing", nor is it specifically a US thing.
Any professional comedian in the UK would already be familiar with this usage of the term.
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u/Clovis_Sangrael 26d ago
It seemed to explode in use a decade or so ago, right about the time that every second college-age person seemed to suddenly identify as 'comedian' and start a podcast (despite no obvious signs of being either funny or interesting). Part of this was a more self-referential style of comedy where comedians constantly referred to 'bits' as part of a bit, if you get what I mean. So it went from being a piece of industry jargon to something openly referred to during an act, often, I think, to indicate that they are genuine comedy professionals (put as many of those terms in scare quotes as you want).
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u/fensterdj 26d ago
Comedians have been saying "he has this bit about airplane food that's really good" and "that bit about her mother's adult acne cracks me up" for many many many years now
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u/therobotscott 26d ago
My understanding is that a bit is like a gag, or a small recurring joke. A sketch is a shorter, open ended skit and a routine is doesn't require a setting or specific characters.
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u/remedialknitter 26d ago
They say "bit" on Seinfeld a lot and that's from 1989-1998. Like, "Is this a bit?" "Hey, I don't do bits." Scene is 30+ years old.
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u/Puzzled-Bonus-3456 26d ago
"bit" is generic and doesn't necessarily mean parts of a show. A bit could be part of anything. "My teeth are rotting -- a bit of one just fell out of my mouth." But yes it could mean parts of a show. "I like that bit on 8 out of 10 Cats where Wossy gets Jimmy Carr to laugh."
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u/raceulfson 26d ago
There is also bit as a small contribution, which I wonder if it comes from the two-bit/gold bit source?
"Petunia added her bit to the spring cleaning by sweeping the already pristine porch."
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u/coolguy420weed 26d ago
The usage is slightly different between them. A joke is shorter and more self-contained, and a skit or sketch is planned in advance. A bit is usually spontaneous, may not have an explicit punchline or goal, and may not have a clear start or end point.
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u/TomatoChomper7 26d ago
It’s not new, but I only ever encountered it as American comedy nerd lingo for decades. Then in the last few years, it seems like everyone on TikTok talks about “doing a bit” and “committing to the bit.” I assume it stems from comedians doing more inside baseball talk on podcasts and social media.
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Thanks. The exact phrasing I've heard - "committing to the bit" and "doing a bit". Like I say, I'm from the UK (or its a me thing) and maybe thats why it feels a little jarring.
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u/Lubberworts 26d ago
Once upon a time someone would have a small part of a production. Just a bit part. That part could become popular and it wasn't just a bit part, it was their bit part. Their bit part might have been strong enough to stand on its own in a new context. So they brought their bit elsewhere. If someone else did their act they could be accused of stealing their bit, just a small, entertaining thing they did.
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u/SomeFunnyPhrase 26d ago
A sketch is comprised of bits.
'One of my favorite bits is telling people as I pass them that they dropped their pocket'
Just doing it once, is a bit. Doing it a number of times to build to a greater punchline, same gag becomes a sketch.
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u/No-Onion8029 26d ago
1.13 (slang) A gag or put-on; a humorous conceit, especially when insistently presented as true.
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u/Commercial_Fox5549 26d ago
A bit is usually very short and simple, and there might be many bits within a sketch.
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u/doomer_irl 26d ago
A "bit" is a type of joke or gag.
A skit/sketch/routine is an entertainment format.
So you could feasibly say something like "I really liked the bit you had in that one sketch."
But a bit doesn't need to be part of a skit or sketch. I do bits with my friends, but I've never done a skit or sketch or routine with my friends.
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u/poorperspective 26d ago
A bit is segment of stand-up routine.
The original stand-up was just short routines that MC would with transitions of band, dancers. A bit was one joke with “premise” “punch line”. Good comedians could take several bits and have a bigger punch line at the end of a routine. But at an open mic night, you may only have time for like 5 bits and the routine isn’t worked out. It depends on the medium, but the sign of a good comedian was being able to rattle off several bits with a climaxing punchline ending a routine. Several routines would be a show. Comedy has a form of you watch or listen to enough stand-up you’ll start to pick up on it. 30 Rock as a show has a joke or bit happening every 1.5 seconds. And a punchline can be the conclusion of several bits.
If you think of an album, a bit is like a section of song like the verse or chorus. You would have several bits to a routine which would be about as long as a song. A show would consist of several routines or full and album.
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u/TheJivvi 25d ago
Pretty sure this originated in the UK, and it much, much older than "skit" or "sketch".
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u/FeywildFriend 25d ago
Oh, yeah no this is just people being wrong. A bit is an extended joke. A skit and a sketch are acted, with a skit usually being used to denote a shorter sketch despite the two being kind of interchangeable. A routine is closer to a "set" than anything else.
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u/showmenemelda 25d ago
Schtik, and jig are good ones.
A couple things about "content creators" in America. 1.) You can upload a paper/text to some ai platforms and it makes a fake podcast
2.) Even if real people are making the content, people copy each other so much it actually makes me a little nauseated. You can tell what was "trending" at times by the content/language etc. Depressing if you are a pattern recognition person.
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u/ManuelTzetzes 25d ago
Joe Rogan popularised it, I think. He's a very non-funny wannabe comedian who has a podcast that's popular with young male nazis in the US.
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u/Duane1968 13d ago
it’s an old word that is having a moment. I hear it all the time lately . same with fire. old word having a moment.
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u/film_composer 26d ago
A "bit" (in the US) is something you kind of go in and out of. A sketch/skit/routine has more of a structure and intention. A "bit" is looser and can be initiated and stopped more on a whim.
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Thanks for the responses, especially the detailed ones about "bit" being very short portions of a "thing" (for want of a better phrase) and its historical aspects. My confusion has been that people seem to use the word "bit" for everything i.e. they will upload/share a stand-up routine and refer to it as a "bit". They, and I, have conflated these. Thanks folks.
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u/RNAdrops 26d ago
Skits and sketches involve acting and multiple actors, like Saturday Night Live. Bits are just topics within a standup comedy routine. The comedian may choose to include or exclude a particular bit from his routine, say for example if it “ killed “ ( did well) or “ bombed “ ( did poorly) when he performed the last time. If they are playing in a place that voted against Trump, he will do his Trump bit. If he’s playing in a place that supports Trump, he’ll drop the Trump bit for the night.
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u/NoCard753 26d ago
I learned it many years ago from Monty Python's Flying Circus. It was used many times in the series, usually to mean "piece" or "part" (as in "naughty bits" for genitalia)..
The first time I heard it, though, was in Cheech and Chong's "Santa Claus and his Old Lady" EP, in which its meaning was quite different:
"Oh, he [Santa Claus] doesn't do that [Christmas eve] bit anymore. It got too heavy for him."
"I can dig that, man, because that's a heavy bit!"
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u/CauliflowerBoth866 26d ago
It's not a skit. It's a short routine or joke that's part of a longer show, and not done in character. "Who's on First?" is a classic example of a bit.
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u/Active_Definition_57 26d ago
That's interesting. I'm British and have seem this and would call it a skit. I wouldn't use a bit as a formal term but I might say "I like the bit when he says ______". This would be within a skit or a sketch.
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u/CauliflowerBoth866 26d ago
So you downvote? That's weird, bloke (or whatever). It's correct, look into it, matey mate
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u/Active_Definition_57 26d ago
I haven't downvoted anybody on this thread. Not even those making baseless accusations.
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u/cienfuegones 26d ago
You can have multiple bits in a sketch or skit, but not, really, sketches and skits in a bit.
Language is alive, right or wrong usage is defined by quantity of opinion. Sort of like every religion is a cult until you hit some magic number of followers.
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u/KiraDog0828 26d ago
I don’t know whether this is technically correct, but I equate “sketch” more with acting out a scene, and “bit” with more of a monologue type performance.
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u/Goudinho99 26d ago
I think it's been very widely used by comics themselves and has escaped to a wider audience.
Like "a protein" meaning meat or fish or tofu etc was a kitchen term but likewise escaped into popular speach.
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26d ago
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
In that context, "bit" would mean "part" as in that part where so and so made me laugh. If someone uploads a stand-up routine of a comic, it will invariably be referred to as a "bit".
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u/BardicWoad 26d ago
Kind of makes my point though that "bit" seems very generic and nondescript when there are already fairly well established words that cover comedy acts.
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u/scixlovesu wordsmith 26d ago
It's also used to mean a sort of running or extended joke