Phonetic Palindromes

Authors

Susan Thorpe

Abstract

Words which are palindromes may, or may not, sound like palindromes. NOON, PEEP, and KINNIKINNIK sound like palindromes. However, most palindromes with more than 4 letters do not sound like palindromes, an exception being the 5 letter MINIM. The palindromically-inconsistent sounds, sometimes subtle, are, nevertheless, real: MADAM, LEVEL, TENET, CIVIC, SOLOS, DEIFIED, and ROTATOR. On the other hand, there exist words which are not palindromes but which sound like palindromes. These are phonetic palindromes. MAIM is a phonetic palindrome.

Recommended Citation

Thorpe, Susan (2011) "Phonetic Palindromes," Word Ways: Vol. 44 : Iss. 3 , Article 24.
Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.butler.edu/wordways/vol44/iss3/24