Anagram – what is it? And why it is so important, not only in the game of Scrabble?

Fans of word games (literally and figuratively) should know this term. If you are fond of Wordfeud but you have never come across it – remember it and use it in your next game! Find out what an anagram is and why it is so important in word duels which take place as part of board games. In this article you will also find some interesting examples of anagrams which you will be able to put into practice quickly – not only during a successful game with friends! Are you ready to expand your horizons? Here we go then!

Anagram – what is it?

We are convinced that construction always starts with good foundations. For this reason, it is necessary to explain what anagram is at the very beginning. This term derived from Greek words and means literally ABOVE THE LETTER (ana and grámma). It is simply a word, which is formed by rearranging letters or syllables of another word. It can also be a sentence or phrase that has been formed the same way.

According to Wikipedia, the following forms are related to anagrams:

• stenoanagram,
• exoanagram,
• endoanagram.

An anagram in its simplest form can simply assume reversing the order of arranging letters and reading them backwards, e.g., elbow – below, state – taste, dusty – study. The English language is rich in anagrams of this type.

Some online dictionaries indicate that an anagram is also “a puzzle, the solving of which consists mainly in forming words by rearranging the letters of other words“.

What is interesting, an anagram from letters was once used by explorers to encode information about inventions. Anagrams can also be found in both classic literature and modern literature. Many writers rearrange the letters of names to create new and interesting names for their characters. William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” is an anagram of “Amleth,” a Danish prince.

As a test to see how well you have grasped the above definition, you can have fun rearranging the letters of your name and coming up with some artistic nicknames for yourself. We are sure you will get a few out-of-controls laughs and your grey matters will be thankful for the practice!

Anagrams – disputed issues that cost a lot…

Making anagrams can be a lot of fun. Unfortunately, as the story of the participant of the TV quiz show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire proved, it is a game which may also cost us a lot of money! In one of the episodes of the show which was broadcasted in 2009 a question was asked:

Which word is not an anagram of the word „rescued”?

a) „cue”; b) „deuce”; c) „reducer”; d) „desk”?

The question for the round amount of 500 thousand Euros was difficult and tricky. After a while of thinking, the contestant gave up and in an act of desperation related to a friend over a phone line. And the friend himself was unable to provide an answer that was satisfactory and 100% certain. After taking another hint, the contestant withdrew from the game. The internet forums were in an uproar! Some suggested that none of the given words was an anagram. Bone of contention was the necessity to use all letters.

Finally, it was stated that the game of anagrams is ‘the arrangement of words from the letters of a base word and not necessarily from all the letters’. Everything became clear. Let us learn from others’ mistakes and let us deepen the secret knowledge!

Anagram – examples to follow!

Making anagrams is one of the most popular word games in the world. To indulge in the new words being created from letter rearrangements, we need practically nothing except a piece of paper, a pen and … a sober mind. With the latter, however, it sometimes varies!

If we are willing to anagram, but we suffer from no inspiration – here’s a little help! The examples below can be used immediately during the game or saved in one’s memory and used at an appropriate time.

Anagram – examples:

• resells – sellers
• cheaters – hectares
• treason – senator
• reversed – reserved
• silenced – licensed
• wreathes – weathers
• hustling – sunlight
• uppers – supper
• vetoed – devote
• marital – martial
• printer – reprint
• manures – surname
• lookout – outlook
• infest – fitness
• joiners – rejoins
• sniper – ripens
• trains – strain
• trials – trails
• tour – rout
• west – stew
• coral – carol
• chase – aches.

Above, anagrams which are quite popular and often used in various word skirmishes and social games are outlined.

It is worth mentioning that not all words in the native language allow creating anagrams. So, if you want to have some fun but for a long time you will not manage to invent any new word – maybe you have just come across an exception confirming the rule that sometimes it is impossible!

Anagrammer – when our minds fail…

As stated earlier, rearranging letters as part of words is a lot of fun and can be done on your own as a way of exercising your mind and training your brain, or in a larger group. If you invite your friends, the stakes are becoming raised!

Any time you get tired and can’t think of anything, you can always use some clever tools. For example, an anagrammer will suggest anagrams of individual words! The free application available on the Internet works as a search engine. Its operation is trivial, but the sophistication of its possibilities is satisfying. You can set appropriate filters and enjoy anagrams of the word thought out by you, which the application will serve you in a second.

It is also a good way to enrich one’s vocabulary, which will be useful to the youngest. Are you ambitious, do you work with words? You should get to know net anagrams better!

Anagram – summary

This article is a tribute to the fans of word games, who care not only for daily entertainment, but also for intellectual exercise. We hope that its content was interesting and comprehensive.

It is known already what anagram is and how to use it to spend a pleasant evening with friends or kill boredom during a journey. We also disclosed that net anagrams enable us to check what words quickly and conveniently we can create on a base word and thus win a game or expand own vocabulary.

The online anagrammer will also be useful for those who like to play Scrabble and Wordfeud or those who are looking for new forms of learning foreign languages. As you can see – there are multiple applications!