juxtaposition (v.)

[Benjamin Zimmer]

>From a recent addition to the Snopes urban legend website:

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http://www.snopes.com/katrina/photos/whatswrong.asp
These photographs may not actually depict what their captions proclaim,
but they do represent a general sort of truth. Whether that truth matches
the social commentary implied by their juxtapositioning is another matter.
-----

Nothing in OED/MWCD/AHD/RHUD for "juxtaposition" as a verb. Exx. of the
verbal noun "juxtapositioning" and the participial adj. "juxtapositioned"
are fairly common on the Web. Oftentimes these forms are apparently just
fancy ways of saying "positioning"/"positioned" (cf. "quintessential" =
'essential', "penultimate" = 'ultimate', "epicenter" = 'center', etc.).

Early cites from Proquest...

* juxtapositioning (vbl. n.)

1949 _Washington Post_ 26 Nov. 6/4 [Letter to the editor] Under the rules
of the game, by what kind of four-dimensional juxtapositioning could this
particular class of mortals discover a legal place to park among the miles
and miles of vacantly enticing but nonetheless illegal spots?

* juxtapositioned (ppl. a.)

1958 _Washington Post_ 22 Jul. B12/1 [Classified ad] Solidly built
all-brick split level. Juxtapositioned between Wis. ave. ext. and Viers
Mill rd.


--Ben Zimmer