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Dec 17, 2007

This week's theme
Yours to discover

This week's words
anthropomorphize
kafkaesque
dysphagia
excursive
jabberwocky

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A.Word.A.Day--anthropomorphize

Why did I select the five words that will be featured this week? Well, I can tell you at the beginning that they have nothing in common. Not in their meanings, not in their origins, not their pronunciations, or anything else. But there was a reason I chose them. What was it?

Put on your sleuthing caps and see if you can figure it out. If you think you've got it, email your answer to (puzzle at wordsmith.org). One answer per person, please. The first reader to uncover the plot will receive an autographed copy of any of my books. So will another reader randomly selected from all the correct answers.

anthropomorphize (an-thruh-puh-MOR-fyz) verb tr., intr.

To attribute human qualities to things not human.

[From Greek anthropo- (human) + morph (form).]

"Yes, we love our pets and anthropomorphize them to the point where we think our cat might enjoy wearing the mouse hat Halloween costume."
Natalie Angier; The Ambivalent Bond With a Ball of Fur; The New York Times; Oct 2, 2007.

See more usage examples of anthropomorphize in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

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