# Ottawa words (letter pattern) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 9, 2026, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139 "2026-04-09T05:57:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/1 "2026-04-09T05:57:50Z")
Some of you may remember Agamemnon words. That is words made up of successive palindromic sequences. In Agamemnon, they are three 3-letter palindromes. Ottawa words are similar. It’s made up of 1, 2, and 3 letter palindromic sequences. I don’t know of any others, can you think of any? Or how about reverse-Ottawa words. That is with 3, 2, and 1 palindromic sequences. I don’t know of any, but ANNATTO has 4, 2, and 1 sequences, so it’s close. There’s also the possibility of longer Ottawa. That is, words of 1, 2, 3, 4 palindromes. Or longer reverse-Ottawa. _Kookaburra_ is really close; just need to change the first A to a U. That shows that it’s not impossible there could be one. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/2 "2026-04-09T10:45:32Z")
Once I reluctantly accept that a single letter can be a palindrome, I could get into this. As a brain exercise, during work breaks, I’ll see if I can think of any without a digital aid. (In Spanish, the first “Agamemnon” word that comes to mind is _baboso,_ effectively meaning “drooling”). ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/3 "2026-04-09T10:50:10Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Once I reluctantly accept that a single letter can be a palindrome, I don’t know why you’re reluctant. Granted, a single letter is a trivial case, but it fits the definition. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/4 "2026-04-09T10:56:43Z")
Oh, I’m already over it. It’s just that _any_ letter can be used, so it just feels a little too easy. The two-letter type can also be “any letter,” but at least there you’re restrained by the two-letter sequences allowed in that language. It’s not until you get to three letters that you are constrained by certain _juxtapositions_ (sequences) of letters, which to me is closer to the essence of this kind of thing. No threadshit intended…as I said, I’ve made my peace with it! This will be hard enough as it is; probably impossible if you disallowed single letter “sequences.” ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/5 "2026-04-09T11:10:45Z")
Let me make clear that the palindromic sequences can be any set of letters. They don’t have to be pronounceable or have vowels or be wordlike or something like that. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/6 "2026-04-09T11:23:00Z")
Got it - thanks. I started going through my head alphabetically. ADDITI— is a qualifying sequence that starts several English words (addition, additive…), but none that I can think of with a four-letter palindromic sequence at the end (no ADDITIONNO\* nor ADDITIVEEV). Onward… \*I checked — there’s no Italian word “addizionno,” just “addizione.” Just thought of ALLEGE — my first real qualifier (obviously many have thought of this before, but I’m avoiding looking anything up, in English at least). No four-letter sequence, though. . ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 11:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/7 "2026-04-09T11:45:37Z")
Also ALLELE (appropriately, since it has to do with sequences of “letters”!). ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/8 "2026-04-09T11:49:01Z")
Just thought of ACCEDE. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/9 "2026-04-09T11:49:58Z")
Nice one. Okay, busy day starting soon…but I’ll check in later today. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/10 "2026-04-09T12:06:55Z")
If a single letter counts as a valid palindromic sequence, then doesn’t that make every word an Agamemnon word? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/11 "2026-04-09T13:31:11Z")
Technically, yes. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/12 "2026-04-09T14:33:22Z")
LEERER DEEDED HEEDED NEEDED WEEDED WOODED > [@Chronos](#): > > If a single letter counts as a valid palindromic sequence, then doesn’t that make every word an Agamemnon word? No, Agamemnon words have 3-letter sequences, so a single letter doesn’t mean anything. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/13 "2026-04-09T16:17:40Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > LEERER > DEEDED > HEEDED > NEEDED > WEEDED > WOODED Also HOODED SEEDED > [@TroutMan](#): > > No, Agamemnon words have 3-letter sequences, so a single letter doesn’t mean anything. Well, single letters are technically palindromes, so all words are order-1 Agamemnon words. But it’s such a trivial and common thing that no one’s interested. Words with letter patterns are only interesting if they’re rare. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/14 "2026-04-09T21:42:04Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Or how about reverse-Ottawa words. That is with 3, 2, and 1 palindromic sequences. ```auto anally baboon cocoon rereel reroof tatoos ``` Agamemnons are not too common but I found these: ```auto coccaceae susuhunan ``` 123 Ottawas are pretty common: ```auto accede affere aggada allana allege allele allene allene alleve ammono annaba annada annexe appere appete arroyo assama assisi baases beelol boorer boosts coonan deeded deeses deesis diiodo doodad eddana effete ellata ellene errata essede essene essene feeded geests gooses heeded heenan hooded illene jeerer kaaawa keenan koosis looses meenen needed neeses noonan nooses ossete ottava ottawa poorer reeded reests rooses roosts saanen seeded teerer tooele uffizi ullucu weeded weewaw weewow wooded zoosis ``` (Some of these are probably proper names.) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/15 "2026-04-09T22:20:27Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > 123 Ottawas are pretty common: Any 1234 Ottawas? Or 4321 Ottawas? I’m guessing not, or you’d have provided them. > [@markn\_1](#): > > (Some of these are probably proper names.) That’s OK. Ottawa itself is a proper name as is Agamemnon. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [April 9, 2026, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/16 "2026-04-09T22:27:50Z")
No, there were no 1234 or 4321 examples in two pretty large word lists that I checked. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2026, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ottawa-words-letter-pattern/1029139/17 "2026-04-10T01:18:12Z")
Okay, then! Fun ones include DOODAD and ANALLY. The most common ones might be NEEDED, POORER, and WOODED. WEEWOW? Thats sounds like one of Borat’s favorite expressions of astonishment.