Word of the Day

: April 21, 2022

juxtapose

verb JUK-stuh-pohz

What It Means

Juxtapose means "to place (different things) side by side (as to compare them or contrast them or to create an interesting effect)."

// The committee juxtaposed the proposals for the new student center, trying to determine which would better meet the needs of the university.

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juxtapose in Context

"There's the original wooden floorboards juxtaposing ... a glossy, stop-and-stare, curved timber wall that extends from behind the counter to the ceiling above." — Anooska Tucker-Evans, The Courier Mail (Australia), 19 Mar. 2022

Did You Know?

A back-formation is a word that has come about through the removal of a prefix or a suffix from a longer word. Etymologists believe juxtapose is a back-formation that was created when people trimmed down the noun juxtaposition. Historical evidence supports the idea: juxtaposition shows up in the 17th century and juxtapose in the 19th.  Juxtaposition is a combination of Latin juxta, meaning "near," and English "position."