Original artwork, not a still
I don't think I've ever drunk champagne before breakfast before. With breakfast on several occasions, but never before, before.
— Breakfast at Tiffany's · 1961
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
The speaker distinguishes drinking champagne with breakfast from drinking it before breakfast. Repeating 'before' makes that small difference into a verbal tangle. The joke gives an unusual distinction careful attention, treating a slight change in timing as a noteworthy new experience.
Context reviewed
