Jewish World Review August 1, 2002 / 23 Menachem-Av, 5762
Richard Lederer
A pouchful of synonyms
Track down a few "joeys" -- words contained within other words -- to get a jump on JWR's word maven.
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Being a marsupial, the female kangaroo carries her young in her pouch. Kangaroo words do the same thing: Within their letters they conceal a smaller word that means the same as the fully grown word. Buried inside a catacomb --- is a tomb. Look inside myself, and you'll find me.
The smaller synonym I call a joey, the name of a kangaroo's offspring. Lederer's law mandates that the letters of the joey must appear in the right order, but not entirely adjacent. That is, like a kangaroo novice, each joey word must take at least one hop. Although we find a story --- history, art --- a cartoon, actual --- factual, rim --- perimeter, is --- exist, toxic --- intoxicate, joy in enjoyment, late --- belated, blot --- blotch, and nth --- umpteenth, they are not true kangaroos because all the letters in each joey are adjacent.
Uncover the 50 miniature synonyms tucked away in each of the kangaroo words that are about to hop across your screen.
01. appropriate 02. astound 03. barren 04. bedraggled 05. blossom 06. clue 07. complemented 08. curtail 09. destruction 10. devilishly
11. discourteous 12. displeasure 13. entwined 14. equitable 15. evacuate
16. exhilaration 17. exorcise
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18. expurgated
19. fabrication 20. fatigue
21. healthier 22. himself 23. incapability 24. indolent 25. instructor 26. irritated 27. joviality 28. latest 29. market 30. matches
31. nestled 32. nourished 33. obligated
34. pinioned
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35. postured
36. prosecute 37. quiescent 38. rapscallion 39. regulates 40. respite
41. salvage 42. satiated 43. scion 44. slithered 45. stockings 46. strives 47. supervisor 48. transgression 49. trustworthy 50. variegated
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JWR contributor Richard Lederer is a language maven. More than a million of his books, which have been Book-of-the-Month Club and Literary Guild alternate selections, are in print. He is the host of "A Way With Words," on KPBS, San Diego Public Radio, and a regular guest on weekend "All Things Considered." He was awarded the Golden Gavel for 2002 by Toastmasters International. Comment by clicking here.
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© 2002, Richard Lederer
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