I. ˈanəˌgram, -aa(ə)m noun
( -s )
Etymology: probably from Middle French anagramme, from New Latin anagramma, modification of Greek anagrammatismos, from anagrammatizein to transpose letters, from ana- + grammat-, gramma letter + -izein -ize — more at grammar
1.
a. : the change of one word or phrase into another by the transposition of its letters
b. : the word or phrase made by transposing the letters of another word or phrase
rebate is an anagram of beater
2. obsolete : mutation , transposition
3. anagrams plural but singular in construction : a game in which words are formed by rearranging the letters of other words or by arranging letters taken at random (as printed blocks from a stock)
II. transitive verb
( anagrammed ; anagrammed ; anagramming ; anagrams )
1. : anagrammatize
2. : to rearrange (the letters of a text) in order to discover a hidden message
3. : to attack (a transposition cipher) by moving a set of letters presumed to have related encipherments (as successive letters presumed to be from the same column of the transposition rectangle, or the letters from the same position in a number of messages) into position next to another such set, forming a tentative set of plaintext polygraphs, a promising juxtaposition being recognized by the formation of many common polygraphs and a probably wrong juxtaposition by the formation of improbable polygraphs