pon-, posit-, pos-, -poning, -poned, -ponency, -ponent, -ponement, -pound

1. The process of putting one thing on top of something else: Sometimes the superposition of books can result in confusion because it is usually too difficult to find and to pick out the book that is desired.
2. In geology, the principle that in a sequence of sedimentary strata, the oldest layer is located on the bottom and it is followed in turn by successively younger layers, on up to the top of the sequence of layers: During the process of superpositions, sediments are deposited on the sea floor in horizontal layers, parallel to the Earth's surface so that the oldest layer is on the bottom with each of the younger layers resting on top.

Another geological explanation of the principle of superposition states that in a sequence of sedimentary rocks or lavas, each layer is younger than the layer beneath it and older than the one above it.

1. To assume something is the way it is based on what is possible or apparent; however, without any proof or specific knowledge: He was supposing that he didn't pick up the book from the library after all because he was distracted by going to the bank.
2. To introduce an idea or a concept: Doug asked his wife, "Suppose we ask our banker how we should invest our money?"
3. To believe that something is true: June told her husband that she thought the plumber would charge more than they had supposed.

1. A term used to describe a particular situation that is probably not realistic despite the fact that many people believe that it is true or real: The supposed experts claim that there is a simple cure for insomnia.
2. That which is generally considered or believed to be correct, but which is not necessarily accurate: College and university students have had a supposed confidence that it would be easy to find a good job just before or reasonably soon after graduating.

A reference to that which is generally believed or thought; however, it is often used to indicate that the speaker doubts the truth of the idea: The teacher supposedly thought that it would be easier for students to use online dictionaries to improve their vocabulary skills; however, too many of these supposedly convenient sources provide inadequate information.

An uncertain belief about something or someone which is believed to be true even though there is no evidence or proof that such assumptions are true: Some people have been living with the supposition that the economy would be improving by now.

Too many military officials have lived with the supposition that the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq could be won; however, their suppositions have resulted in more deaths of civilians and military personnel than anyone could have anticipated and victory is no longer considered a possibility.

That which is based primarily on guessing rather than on any evidence: Suppositional theories about the extinction of dinosaurs are based on incomplete proof.

The police only had suppositional knowledge as to who was responsible for the murder.

A description of something that is based on an assumption instead of fact: The suppositionally developed theories about Timothy's disappearance didn't help find him nor determine why he left home.

1. A reference to an idea or belief which hasn't been supported or proven: The supposititious belief of Mr. Smith, the chairman of the committee, that there would be unanimous agreement for the new project turned out to be untrue.
2. A substitution for the real thing; not genuine: She was a more supposititious candidate for congress than her political backers had anticipated.

1. A semisolid substance for the introduction into the rectum, vagina, or urethra; where it dissolves for the treatment of certain medical conditions: The suppository often serves as a device for applying medicines that are to be absorbed by the body when it is inserted into the appropriate bodily orifice or opening.

Suppositories are especially useful in babies, in uncooperative patients, and in patients who easily vomit or who have certain digestive disorders.

2. Etymology: from Medieval Latin suppositorium and Late Latin suppositorius, "placed underneath or up"; from Latin suppositus, past participle of supponere, "to put" or "to place under".

1. To cause two or more things to change places or locations with each other: When Trudy's father dialed her phone number, he got the wrong person; so, he assumed that he had accidentally transposed a couple of the numbers.

When Jack L., the author, wrote about two of the characters in his novel, the Susan, the editor, noticed that every once in awhile, the writer was mistakenly transposing their names.

2. To move to a different place or context: The teacher pointed out that James had misspelled the word "strength" as "strenght" on his paper; so, she suggested that he correct it by transposing the last two letters to make the spelling correct.
3. To write or to perform a musical composition in a key other than the original or given key: Since Janet was a soprano, the piece she was supposed to sing had to be transposed higher from C major to E major.

A person who rewrites or performs a musical piece in another key: The transposer revised the musical composition to such an extent that it was difficult to recognize the original way it was performed.

1. A reversal or an alteration of the locations or order in which things stand: Some vocabulary books consist of several transpositions of word orders.
2. The placing of something in a different setting, or the recasting of something in a different language, style, or medium: It is said that the Chinese dragon is a transposition of the serpent.
3. The rewriting or playing of a piece of music in a key or at a pitch other than the original or usual key or pitch: The orchestra played various transpositions that had been changed from their original compositions.
4. In mathematics, the changing of the order of a set of things or arranging in different orders: The transpositions of a, b, and c are abc, acb, bac, bca, cab, and cba.

By subtracting 2 from both sides of the equation 2 + x = 4, a person can have a transposition that moves 2 to the other side, resulting in x = 4 - 2, which makes x equal 2.

5. A transfer of a DNA segment to a new place on the same or another chromosome: The transposition of a gene or set of genes goes from one DNA position to another one.

Relating to an action that causes things to exchange places with each other: The two transpositional frames in the film were accidentally exchanged which resulted in that section of the movie looking as if the actor's head was suddenly moving forward instead of backward.

In the Wicked Bible, that was published as a version of the King James Bible in 1631, there was a transpositional "blank", or deletion, in place of the word "not". The result of this transpositional error resulted in the commandment saying "Thou shalt commit adultery" instead of "Thou shalt not commit adultery.

A reference to something that has been changed into a different form or which is being used in a different place or situation, etc.: The presentations of the internet sites on the Apple iPad during the train ride were producing good results; however, they became a transpositive failure in the book-fair buildings because there were too many people using iPads, iPhones, etc. and overloading the system there.

A segment of DNA (a chemical substance that contains genetic information and is found in all living cells and some viruses) which can independently duplicate itself and insert that copy into a new position within the same or another chromosome or plasmid (unit of DNA that replicates within a cell independently of the chromosomal DNA): Transposons are similar to viruses and in humans are a cause of hemophilia, certain cancers, and other diseases.

In other organisms, transposons can become a permanent and even beneficial part of the genome, as in maize (corn), where transposons account for half of the genome, and in certain bacteria, where genes for antibiotic resistance can spread by means of transposons.

Another explanation states that a transposon is a segment of DNA that is capable of inserting copies of itself into other DNA sections within the same cell.