HBO's Chernobyl

[Gilrandir]

Those don't work well as puns.

They are not meant as puns but as telescopic words (like brunch= breakfast + lunch).

My understanding was that khokhol is considered a fairly playful sobriquet like "limey" or "cheesehead". I apologize for being a goat.

For a Russian who uses it, it may be what you describe. Not so for Ukrainians. But the apology is accepted.