A palindrome is a word, phrase or number that can be read and spelled the same way in either direction. Although palindromes amount to nothing more than literary trivia, they sure can tickle your funny bone!

Do you have any favorite palindromes? Common word palindromes include civic, radar, level, rotor, kayak and race car.

Palindromes can also consist of entire phrases, such as “step on no pets.” In the case of these longer palindromes, such as “no lemon, no melon,” just ignore spacing when reading them backward.

Language isn’t the only place you’ll find palindromes. For example, the number 9339 is a palindromic number.

Palindromic dates, such as 01/02/2010, fascinate many people, too. The next palindromic date will be November 2, 2011 (11/02/2011).

You can even find palindromes in music. Joseph Haydn’s Symphony 47 in G Major is often called “The Palindrome” because the third movement, minuet and trio create a musical palindrome. The piece is played forward twice, then backward twice, arriving where it began.