What are “kangaroo words?” A kangaroo word contains the letters of a synonym in the correct order.
The synonyms nestled inside a kangaroo word are called joey words. This is a reference to how baby kangaroos cuddle inside their mothers’ pouches.
The letters that make up joey words can be adjacent or otherwise. They should be in the proper sequence, unlike anagrams. You get bonus points if the joey words are not related etymologically.
Kangaroo Word Examples
There are tons of kangaroo words hopping around out there. Here are a few examples for you to box around:
- Abnormality: anomaly
- Balderdash: blah
- Catacomb: tomb
- Dismayed: sad
- Entwined: tied
- Falsified: lied
- Granulated: grated
- Honorable: noble
- Infuriated: irate
- Jollity: joy
- Kindred: kin
- Lighted: lit
- Misinterpreted: erred
- Nourished: nursed
- Ornamented: ornate
- Precipitation: rain
- Quintuplet: quintet
- Rambunctious: raucous
- Stealthy: sly
- Tracked: traced
- Unanimity: unity
- Veracity: verity
- Weakening: waning
- Yearning: yen
Twin Words
Twin kangaroo words have two or more joey words snuggled inside them. Some examples are down under:
- Complaisant: compliant & pliant
- Frangible: fragile & frail
- Perambulate: ramble & amble
Anti-Kangaroo Words
Anti-kangaroo words contain antonyms instead of synonyms. Here’s the rest of the zoo:
- Animosity: amity
- Covert: overt
- Exacerbate: abate
Source:
Wikipedia & Wiktionary
See also: More articles for Word People