Wordsmith.org: the magic of words


A.Word.A.Day

About | Media | Search | Contact  


Home

Today's Word

Subscribe

Archives



Mar 29, 2018
This week’s theme
Words described using their anagrams

This week’s words
listerize
adulatory
babble
metathesis
blate

“There is no material with which human beings work which has so much potential energy as words.” ~Earnest Calkins
Send energy to friends & family
Bookmark and Share Facebook Twitter Digg MySpace Bookmark and Share
A.Word.A.Day
with Anu Garg

metathesis

PRONUNCIATION:
(muh-TATH-uh-sis)

MEANING:
noun:
1. The transposition of letters, sounds, or syllables in a word. Example: aks for ask.
2. In chemistry, double decomposition.

ANAGRAM:
metathesis = It’s the same.

ETYMOLOGY:
Via Latin from Greek metatithenai (to transpose), from meta- (among, after) + tithenai (to place). Earliest documented use: 1538.

USAGE:
“As Caractacus, Cedric was the heroic British chieftain who rebelled against Roman rule. As Cerdic son of Cymbeline, Cedric by metathesis was the founder of the kingdom of Wessex.”
Philip Howard; Column; The Times (London, UK); Mar 10, 1995.

See more usage examples of metathesis in Vocabulary.com’s dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
Kindness is always fashionable. -Amelia Barr, novelist (29 Mar 1831-1919)

We need your help

Help us continue to spread the magic of words to readers everywhere

Donate

Subscriber Services
Awards | Stats | Links | Privacy Policy
Contribute | Advertise

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith