The Duke of Edinburgh added to his long list of notable public remarks on Thursday by asking a group of female community workers: “Who do you sponge off?”
The 94-year-old was visiting the Chadwell Heath Community Centre in east London with the Queen when he asked the question.
The Queen had just been presented with a sponge cake during the visit, Sky News reported.
"The Duke said to us, 'Who do you sponge off?' We're all married so it's our husbands," Nusrat Zamir, the founder of the Chadwell Heath Asian Women's Network, told the Press Association.
"He was just teasing, and it's similar to what I call my husband – the wallet."
Zamir, 35, said Prince Philip had also asked the group if they “meet up to have a gossip”.
"It's a familiar question, a lot of people say what the duke said, but we do a lot of work," she added.
During the visit, the duke also asked Martin Shaw if he had any friends left after Shaw said he was a professional fundraiser.
His comments come only a few days after he was caught on camera swearing at a cameraman.
Responding to Prince Philip's latest incident, a royal aide said: "There's a context here, they were talking about a sponge cake, no offence was intended or taken.
"The whole visit took place in a wonderful atmosphere."