| metathesis |
| Definition: The reordering of sounds within a word. |
| Example:
(1) flimsy was probably coined as a metathesis of film (2) crud from curd (3) third from the Old English thridda |
| Etymology: The word ultimately derives from the Greek metathesis, change of position (from meta, to change + tithenai, to place or set). Note: The Greek term was coined by Dionysius of Halicarnassus, a first-century BCE Greek scholar who analyzed and modified texts to make them more eloquent. He called his editing methodology metathesis. |
| Oxford English Dictionary: The word's first OED citation in this sense is from 1660: "Tahur, which is the Metathesis of Hurta, a thief." (Jer. Taylor Duct. Dubit. iv. i. rule 2 §36) |