metathesis

noun

a chemical reaction between two compounds in which parts of each are interchanged to form two new compounds (AB+CD=AD+CB)

a linguistic process of transposition of sounds or syllables within a word or words within a sentence

Roots

metameta- · Greek · across, transposition tithenaithesis- · Greek · a placing

Synonyms & related words for metathesis

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Words related to metathesis

Explore words related to metathesis — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include metathetically, metathesize, metathetic, metathetical, cycloaddition, isomerizing, isomerization, dehydrogenation. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Where does metathesis come from?

The word metathesis breaks down into 2 roots of Greek origin: meta-, from Greek meta (“across, transposition”); and thesis, from Greek tithenai (“a placing”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.