anagram

noun

an·a·gram | \ ˈa-nə-ˌgram

Definition of anagram

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a word or phrase made by transposing the letters of another word or phrase The word "secure" is an anagram of "rescue."

2 anagrams plural in form but singular in construction : a game in which words are formed by rearranging the letters of other words or by arranging letters taken (as from a stock of cards or blocks) at random

anagram

verb

anagrammed; anagramming

Definition of anagram (Entry 2 of 2)

transitive verb

1 : anagrammatize anagrammed the letters of "battle" to form "tablet"

2 : to rearrange (the letters of a text) in order to discover a hidden message

Other Words from anagram More Example Sentences Learn More About anagram

Other Words from anagram

Noun

anagrammatic \ ˌa-nə-grə-ˈma-tik

\ or less commonly anagrammatical \ ˌa-nə-grə-ˈma-ti-kəl

\ adjective

anagrammatically \ ˌa-nə-grə-ˈma-ti-k(ə-)lē

\ adverb

Examples of anagram in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Tellingly, an anagram of all the letters in omicron is moronic. — Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Dec. 2021 In 1965, Loewe introduced its first ready-to-wear collection, and five years later, the brand enlisted Spanish artist Vicente Vela to develop a logo—the famed anagram of four scrolling l’s still in use today. — Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 1 Oct. 2021 The bag features the house’s anagram symbol woven in a jacquard. — Rachel Besser, Vogue, 21 Sep. 2021 Loxarel farms biodynamically, and makes this wine with the three classic cava grapes, parellada, macabeu and xarello (of which Loxarel is an anagram). — New York Times, 19 Aug. 2021 In their first official post, the bandmembers -- who in 2020 launched alternate social media accounts under the anagram Nude Dragons -- made a serious but lightheartedly-worded request for people to be respectful. — Jem Aswad, chicagotribune.com, 16 June 2021 Meanwhile in Silicon Valley, Pal Labs, whose name does not resemble an anagram of a real-life tech giant whatsoever, is about to make a big announcement. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 5 May 2021 The song’s title, meanwhile, is an anagram for none other than Madonna. — Hank Shteamer, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2021 Include the original title or text — spelled correctly, so that your anagram makes sense — or the Empress will be Scrooge-scowly. — Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Every time someone joins (several people a week) the Devs commence to anagram the newbie’s name in every which way but the real one — sometimes dozens. — Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'anagram.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for anagram

Noun

probably from Middle French anagramme, from New Latin anagrammat-, anagramma, modification of Greek anagrammatismos, from anagrammatizein to transpose letters, from ana- + grammat-, gramma letter — more at gram

Verb

derivative of anagram entry 1

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