In this lesson, we’ll discuss antonyms or opposite words. We will learn about the different types of words that can be antonyms, and how to spot antonyms in text.
Words that are directly opposite in meaning are called antonyms. Here are some examples of antonyms.
| Happy | Sad |
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| Up | Down |
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| Day | Night |
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An antonym changes the meaning of a word or a sentence. Let's see an example.
I thought she would be sad but she was happy. In this sentence, the words ‘sad’ and ‘happy’ are antonyms.
There are many flowers but few bees. In this sentence, the words ‘many’ and ‘few’ are antonyms.
Do all words have antonyms?
NO. Not all words have antonyms. Only certain words have opposites.
Take the name of an animal like “dog”. Can you think of an antonym for "dog"?
Did the word ‘cat’ pop into your head?
"Dog" and "cat" are related words but they are not antonyms. Remember antonyms are the direct opposites of each other, not just different from each other. So, while "dog" and "cat" are very different types of pets, they’re not complete opposites of each other. And so, they are not antonyms.
Mostly, words that are used to describe something have antonyms. For example,
Late – Early
Loud – Quiet
Big – Small
Tall – Short
Also, words that show a relationship between words or locations also have antonyms. For example,
In – Out
Front - Back
Over – Under
Near – Far
Actions words can also have antonyms. For example,
Open – Close
Buy – Sell
Find – Lose
Come – Go
Begin - End
What about colors? When it comes to colors, there are only two words that make an antonym pair: ''black'' and ''white.''These two colors are opposites because black is the absence of color, while white is the presence of all colors. No other colors can be antonyms.
| Black | White |
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