When you scramble a word to create a new word, you've created an anagram. For example, you can turn the word anagram into ragman, ma rang or nag a ram! Anagram examples can be fun and witty, and they often end in hilarious results.
Examples of Simple Anagrams
Many anagrams of simple words are random, new words that are not relevant to the original.
angel = glean | arc = car | brag = grab |
bored = robed | cat = act | cider = cried |
dusty = study | elbow = below | inch = chin |
night = thing | peach = cheap | players = parsley |
sadder = dreads | save = vase | state = taste |
Clever Anagram Examples
A creative way to use anagrams is to make them relevant to the original word or phrase. A great example is debit card and its anagram, bad credit. Additional examples of relevant (yet funny) anagrams are:
a gentleman = elegant man | astronomer = moon starer | Christmas = trims cash |
conversation = voices rant on | dormitory = dirty room | eleven plus two = twelve plus one |
Fourth of July = joyful Fourth | listen = silent | schoolmaster = the classroom |
slot machines = cash lost in 'em | snooze alarms = alas, no more Z's | the detectives = detect thieves |
the eyes = they see | the Morse Code = here come dots | vacation time = I am not active |
Famous Anagram Examples
You can even create anagrams from a famous person's name. Some of these anagrams describe that person quite well, while others are quite silly! Examples of writers, actors, scientists, athletes, and politicians whose names work as anagrams include:
Clint Eastwood = old west action | Elvis Presley = Presley lives | Emily Dickinson = income is kindly |
George Bush = he bugs Gore | Jim Morrison = Mr. Mojo Risin' | Madam Curie = me: radium ace |
Madonna Louise Ciccone = one cool dance musician | Michael Jordan = jam on, rich deal | Ronald Reagan = A darn long era |
Russell Crowe = scowler rules | Saoirse Ronan = rare as onions | Shaquille O'Neal = one equals a hill |
Thomas Edison = notes said "Ohm" | T.S. Eliot = toilets | William Shakespeare = I'll make a wise phrase |
Examples of Anagrams in Literature and Movies
Anagrams are popular clues in both literature and movies. Many writers also rearrange the letters of names to create new and interesting names for their characters. Some examples of anagrams in literature and movies include:
- William Shakespeare's "Hamlet" is actually an anagram of "Amleth," a Danish prince.
- In Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, Gulliver visits Tribnia, also known as Langden, anagrams of Britain and England, respectively.
- J.K. Rowling uses the anagram "I am Lord Voldemort" as an anagram for the Dark Lord’s prior name, Tom Marvolo Riddle.
- In Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, clues left by a murdered museum curator are hidden in anagrams: O, Draconian devil (Leonardo da Vinci), Oh, lame saint (the Mona Lisa), so dark the con of man (Madonna of the Rocks).
- Anagrams are everywhere in Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events. Most often it's the author's name (Loney M. Setnick) and Count Olaf's name (Al Funcoot).
- The movie October Sky is based on the book Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam. The titles are anagrams of one another.
- In the movie and book The Shining by Stephen King, the character Danny screams REDRUM and writes the word on the mirror using lipstick. REDRUM is an anagram for Murder.
- In The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lecter gave detectives the name Louis Friend. Louis Friend is an anagram for iron sulfide. Iron sulfide is known as Fool's Gold, meaning that Lecter's clue was meaningless.
Have Fun With Words
Anagrams are an interesting play on words and challenge us to be creative and witty. To use wordplay in even more challenging (and hilarious!) ways, check out:
- Anagram Solver by WordFinder. A free anagram solver to unscramble letters and form new words
- Antigrams: 16 Words That House Their Opposites
- 75 Harry Potter Puns Worthy of a Hogwarts Education
- Paraprosdokian: 40 Funny Sentences You Won't Expect