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The Learning Kingdom's Cool Word of the Day for June 17, 1999
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chimera [n. kuh-MEER-uh / ky-MEER-uh]
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A Chimera (capitalized c) is an imaginary monster made out of parts of
several different creatures. A chimera (lower case c) is an actual,
living creature that contains parts with different genetic
information. Such creatures can be created by mutations in embryos,
or by artificial grafting of embryonic cells.
There is also the adjective chimerical [kuh-MARE-ih-kul], used to
describe something that is wildly improbable or impossibly weird.
The original Greek Khimaira was a mythical, fire-breathing beast with
the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and a long serpent or dragon
tail. However, a khimaira could also be simply a she-goat.
The Greek word was a condensed form of an expression meaning "female
animal of one winter," from the ancient root ghei- (winter) that also
led to our words hibernate and hibernation.
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