Word
|
Antonym
|
Example
|
|---|
| above (prep) | below (prep) | The cups are on the shelf above the sink.
The washing-up liquid is below the sink. |
| absent (a) | present (a) | Arthur is not here today. He's absent.
The teacher will be present at the graduation ceremony. |
| accept (v) | refuse (v) | The customer accepts/refuses the conditions. |
| accidental (a) | intentional (a) | He didn't intend to break the window. It was accidental.
He wanted to break the window. It was intentional. |
| add (v) | subtract (v) | An amount of tax must be added to the bill.
A mistaken amount was substracted from the bill. |
| admit (v) | deny (v) | Bobby said he stole the ball. He admitted it.
Sam said he didn't steal the ball. He denied it. |
| affirmative (a) | negative (a) | I got the job! The reply was affirmative.
I'm disappointed. I received a negative reply. |
| after (prep) | before (prep) | My guitar lesson is after lunch, at 2 pm.
The tennis match is before lunch, at 11 am. |
| alive (a) | dead (a) | The man was alive/dead when the doctor arrived. |
| allow (v) | forbid (v) | Food is allowed but smoking is forbidden. |
| approximately(a) | exactly (a) | The journey will take approximately an hour.
The journey will take exactly 48 minutes and 30 seconds. |
| arrive (v) | depart (v) | The train departs at 10.15 am and arrives at 2 pm. |
| attack (v) | defend (v) | Enemy forces attacked the harbour.
Our troups defended it. |
| awake (a) | asleep (a) | I can hear noise. The baby is awake.
There is no noise. The baby is still asleep. |
|
| bad (a) | good (a) | Pedro is a bad student. He must work harder.
José got good results in English. He is very pleased. |
| beautiful (a) | ugly (a) | The actress is very beautiful.
The wound left an ugly scar on the man's face. |
| before (prep) | after (prep) | The tennis match is before lunch, at 11 am.
My guitar lesson is after lunch, at 2 pm. |
| begin (v) | end (v) | The film begins at 7 pm and ends at 8.30 pm. |
| below (prep) | above (prep) | The bookshelves are above the television.
The dvds are below it. |
| big (a) | small (a) | My boss drives a big car but my car is small. |
| bitter (a) | sweet (a) | We had a choice between sweet tea or bitter wine. |
| brave (a) | cowardly (a) | You were very brave to defend the group.
A cowardly person runs away when faced with danger. |
|
| cheap (a) | expensive (a) | This shop sells cheap/expensive clothes. |
| clean (a) | dirty (a) | When our parents returned the house was clean/dirty. |
| cold (a) | hot (a) | We need to heat the soup because it's cold.
Be careful! The plate is very hot. |
| come (v) | go (v) | Visitors to the museum come and go all day |
| complicated (a) | simple (a) | Some legal terms can be complicated and difficult to understand.
The terms of the agreement were simple and clear. |
| cool (a) | warm (a) | In autumn you should bring clothes for cool weather.
In spring the weather is often warm. |
| correct (a) | incorrect (a) | His answer was correct/incorrect. |
| cowardly (a) | brave (a) | You were very brave to defend the group.
It was cowardly of you to run away. |
| curly (a) | straight (a) | Her hair is curly/straight. |
|
| damage (v) | repair (v) | If you damage anything you will have to repair it. |
| dangerous (a) | safe (a) | Be careful. The building is in a very dangerous area.
Don' worry. We live in a safe part of the city. |
| dark (a) | light (a) | What colour is your car? It's dark/light blue. |
| depart (v) | arrive (v) | The train departs at 10.15 am and arrives at 2 pm |
| despair (v) | hope (v) | There is no work here. Tom despairs of finding a job.
Andy has graduated and hopes to find a job soon. |
| different (a) | similar (a) | All the houses are different. None of them are similar.
The houses are all similar to each other. They are alike. |
| difficult (a) | easy (a) | The English test was quite difficult/easy. |
|
| early (a) | late (a) | Jack had to leave at 6 am so he had an early breakfast.
I didn't have to work so I had a late breakfast. |
|
| false (a) | true (a) | Some details were false but the main story was true. |
| fat (a) | thin | The shopkeeper is overweight. He's quite fat.
His wife is the opposite. She's very thin. |
| find (v) | lose (v) | You try to find something when you lose it. |
| follow (v) | lead (v) | The teacher leads the group and the children followher. |
| forbid (v) | allow (v) | Food is allowed but smoking is forbidden. |
| forget (v) | remember (v) | I'm losing my memory. I often forget things.
I've got a good memory. I remember names easily. |
| freeze (v) | melt (v) | You freeze food in the freezer.
Ice-cream will melt in the sun. |
| full (a) | empty (a) | This bottle of milk is empty. The one in the fridge isfull. |
|
| gentle (a) | violent (a) | They walked along the beach enjoying the gentlebreeze.
A violent storm broke out in the evening. |
| good (a) | bad (a) | José got good results in English. He is very pleased.
Pedro is a bad student. He must work harder. |
|
| happy (a) | sad (a) | Jimmy was sad leaving New York, but he was happy
to see his family again. |
| hard (a) | soft (a) | He slept in a hard bed but the pillow was soft. |
| hardworking (a) | lazy (a) | Joe works well. His colleagues say he is hardworking.Mike does as little as possible. He's lazy. |
| heavy (a) | light (a) | My suitcase is very heavy. I can't lift it.
My suitcase is very light. I can carry it. |
| hope (v) | despair (a) | Andy has graduated and hopes to find a job soon.
There is no work here. Tom despairs of finding a job. |
| hot | cold | Be careful! The plate is very hot.
We need to heat the soup because it's cold. |
|
| intelligent (a) | stupid (a) | Intelligent people understand quickly.
Stupid people are slow to understand things. |
| interesting (a) | boring (a) | Tom found the conference quite interesting.
Alex left before the end because he found it boring. |
| long (a) | short (a) | The bride wore a long dress.
Her mother's dress was short . |
|
| married (a) | single (a) | My sister is married but my brother is still single. |
| modern (a) | traditional (a) | Her dress was modern but the ceremony wastraditional. |
|
| negative (a) | affirmative (a) | I'm disappointed. I received a negative reply.
I got the job! The reply was affirmative. |
| new (a) | old (a) | The television set is old. We're going to buy a newone. |
| noisy (a) | quiet (a) | The boys are too noisy. Tell them to be quiet! |
|
| polite (a) | impolite (a) | The children are impolite. They should learn to bepolite. |
| poor (a) | rich (a) | Rich people can buy what they want.
Poor people have to be careful with their money. |
| proper (a) | improper (a) | For the interview wear a proper dress, not jeans!
The boy was punished for behaving in an improperway. |
|
| quiet (a) | noisy (a) | We live in a quiet area. It's not noisy at all. |
|
| remember (v) | forget (v) | I've got a good memory. I remember names easily.
I'm losing my memory. I often forget things. |
| right (a) | wrong (a) | We took the right road and arrived on time.
The others went the wrong way and got lost. |
|
| safe (a) | dangerous (a) | The children can play here. It's a safe place.
Don't play near the road. It's too dangerous. |
| short (a) | long (a) | The bride wore a long dress but her mother wore ashort one. |
| shout (v) | whisper (v) | The policeman shouted a warning.
People whisper at the cinema so as not to disturb others. |
| similar (a) | different (a) | The houses are all similar to each other. They are alike.
All the houses are different. None of them are similar. |
| simple (a) | complicated (a) | The terms of the agreement were simple and clear.
Some legal terms can be complicated and difficult to understand. |
| single (a) | married (a) | My brother is still single but my sister is married. |
| small (a) | big (a) | This bag is too small. We need a big bag to go shopping. |
| soft (a) | hard (a) | She likes a soft pillow but prefers a hard mattress. |
|
| traditional (a) | modern (a) | The ceremony was traditional but her dress wasmodern. |
| true (a) | false (a) | The story was true but some of the details were false. |
|
| well | unwell / ill | My grandfather is in good health. He's well.
My grandmother has the 'flu. She's unwell at the moment. |
| whisper (v) | shout (v) | People whisper at the cinema so as not to disturb others.
The policeman shouted a warning. |
| wrong (a) | right (a) | He didn't understand me because I used the wrongword.
I used a dictionary to find the right word. |
