Chop ’n’ swap
In a chop ‘n’ swap, a letter is removed (chopped) from somewhere in the middle of a word or phrase; the two pieces remaining switch positions (swap). Examples: shame → chop the “a” → swap the parts → mesh; and taffies, fiesta (written “ta(f)fies”). The chop ’n’ swap was invented by QED in October 2003.
In a phonetic chop ’n’ swap, a word or phrase becomes another when one sound is deleted (chopped) from somewhere inside, leaving two pieces, which are phonetically swapped. Example: rucksack, crooks.
In a word chop ’n’ swap, a word is deleted from a longer one, and the remaining pieces are interchanged to form a third word. Example: le(vita)ting. Invented by Badir and introduced in January 2008.
In a change ’n’ swap, an internal letter is changed (not deleted) to another letter, and the strings on either side switch places to form another word or phrase the same length as the original. Examples: cleric, icicle; blessing, singable. Invented by Tinhorn and introduced in November 2008.
In a hack ’n’ back, a letter is removed from somewhere in the middle of a word or phrase. The second remaining piece is reversed and appended to the first piece. Examples: miter → hack the “t” → reverse the second part → mire; seat belt, Seattle.