palindrome

<font size="-1" face="arial, helvetica"> <p> <strong> <font color="#000066">Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for January 3, 2022 is:</font> </strong> </p> <p> <strong>palindrome</strong> &#149; \PAL-un-drohm\&nbsp; &#149; <em>noun</em><br /> <p>A <em>palindrome</em> is a word, verse, or sentence (as "Able was I ere I saw Elba"), or a number (as 2002) that reads the same backward or forward.</p> <p>// Hannah was amused when Otto pointed out that they both had first names that were <em>palindromes</em>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/palindrome">See the entry ></a></p> </p> <p> <strong>Examples:</strong><br /> <p>"The original members—Agnetha, Bjorn, Benny and Anni, whose first names form the <em>palindrome</em> ABBA—were a perpetual presence on the radio airwaves during their 1972 to '82 heyday, and one of the most commercially successful acts in the history of popular music." — Ray Schweibert, <em>The Atlantic City (New Jersey) Weekly</em>, 16 Nov. 2021</p> </p> <p> <strong>Did you know?</strong><br /> <p><em>Palindrome</em> comes from Greek <em>palindromos</em>, meaning "running back again," which itself is from <em>palin</em> ("back," "again") and <em>dramein</em> ("to run"). Nowadays, we appreciate a clever palindrome—such as "Drab as a fool, aloof as a bard" or "A man, a plan, a canal: Panama"—or even a simple one like "race car," but in the past palindromes were more than just smart wordplay. Some folks thought they were magical, and they carved them on walls or amulets for protection.</p> <br /><br /> </p> </font>