Antonyms

 

Some important antonyms (opposite words) need to know for any competitive test!

1. Ability - inability

2. Happy - unhappy

3. Import - export

4. Interior - exterior

5. Maximum - minimum

6. Include - exclude

7. Junior - senior

8. Above - below

9. Majority - minority

10. Optimist - pessimist

11. Superior - inferior

12. Accept - refuse

13. Civilized - uncivilized/savage/barbaric

14. Big - small

15. Acquire - lose

16. Ancient - modern

17. Agree - disagree

18. Alive - dead

19. Barren - fertile

20. Admire - despise

21. Blunt - sharp

22. Bold - timid

23. Bright - dim/dull

24. Broad - narrow

25. Care - neglect

26. Confess - deny

27. Cool - warm

28. Best - worst

29. Energetic- lethargic

30. Clean  - dirty

31. Cruel - kind

32. Domestic - wild

33. Difficult - easy

34. Dangerous - safe

35. Dark - bright

36. Death - birth

37. Debit - credit

38. Early - late

39. Earn - spend

40. Empty - full

41. False - true

42. Guilty - innocent

43. Fine - coarse

44. Freedom - slavery

45. Fat - thin

46. Foolish - wise

47. Fresh - stale

48. Fear - courage

49. Guilty - innocent

50. Gain - loss

51. Good - bad

52. High - low

53. Humble - proud/arrogant

54. Honour - dishonour

55. Joy - sorrow

56. Knowledge - ignorance

57. Kind - cruel

58. Lie - truth

59. Little - much

60. Masculine - feminine

61. Make - mar/break

62. Natural - artificial

63. Noise - silence

64. Oral - written

65. Pride/arrogance - humility

66. Permanent - temporary/transitory

67. Presence - absence

68. Profit - loss

69. Prose - poetry

70. Quick - slow

71. Receive - give

72. Reject - accept

73. Ripe - raw

74. Rough - smooth

75. Remember - forget

76. Rich - poor

77. Sharp - dull

78. Tragedy - comedy

79. General - particular

80. Victory - defeat

81. Wild - domestic/tame

82. Weak - strong

83. Wisdom - folly

84. Youth - aged

85. Give - take

86. Laugh - cry

87. Smile - frown

88. Buy - sell

89. Here - there

90. This - that

91. Never - always

92. Stop - start

93. Wrong - right

94. Tight - loose

95. Love - hate

96. Throw - catch

97. Yes - no

98. Forward - backward

99. Stand - sit

100. Lost - found

101. Theist - Atheist

102. Easy/simple- hard/tricky

103. Ordinary - extraordinary

104. Theoretical - practical

105. Noble- ignoble

106. Superior- inferior

107. Obey- defy

108. above – below, beneath

109. abstract – concrete

110. accept – reject

111. acquit – condemn

112. advance – retreat

113.  advantage – disadvantage

114. affirm – deny

115. affluence – poverty

116. aggravate – alleviate, lessen

117. agree – differ

118. allow – forbid

119. analysis – synthesis

120. ancestor – descendant

121. ancient – modern

122. aristocrat – commoner

123. arrive – depart

124. ascent – descent

125. assent – dissent

126. asset – liability

127. attract – repel

128. awake – asleep

129. barren – fertile

130. base – noble

131. beautiful – ugly

132. belief – doubt

133. benediction – malediction

134. benevolent – malevolent

135. boom – slump

136. bravery – cowardice

137. beautiful – ugly

138. benevolent – malevolent

139. carnal – spiritual

140. centrifugal – centripetal

141. cheap – dear, costly

142. cheerful – gloomy

143. clean – dirty

144. clever – stupid

145. common – rare

146. compulsory – optional

147. concord – discord

148. confident – diffident

149. create – destroy

150. dark – light

151. dawn – dusk

152. debtor – creditor

153. deep – shallow

154. defensive – offensive

155 . deliberate – unintentional, 

156. accidental- intentional

157. diligent – crazy

158. dilute – concentrated

159.dwarf – giant

160. elevation – depression

161. exclude – include

162. exit – entrance

163. exotic – indigenous

164. expand – contract

165. explicit – implicit

166. external – internal

167. extravagant – frugal, thrifty

168. famous – obscure

169. fast – loose, slow

 

170. fat – lean, thin

171. fictitious – real

 

172. forget – remember

173. frequent – rare

174. fresh – stale

175. friendly – hostile

176. full – empty

177. gain – loss

178. gather – scatter

179. general – particular, special

180. generous – mean

181. gradual – abrupt, sudden

182. guilty – innocent

183. harsh – gentle

184. hasty – leisurely

185. hate – love

186. haughty – meek

187. heavy – light

188. high – low

189. hit – miss

190. hollow – solid

191. honour – shame

192. hope – despair

193. host- guest

194. hurt – heal

195. ideal – actual

196. idle – busy

197. imagination – reality

198. increase – decrease

199. industrious – indolent, lazy

200. inferior – superior

201. inhale – exhale

202. input – output

203. joy – sorrow

204. junior – senior

205. kind/lenient – cruel/savage

206. kindle – extinguish

207. knowledge – ignorance

208. lament – rejoice

209. later – earlier

210. latter – former

211. lead – follow

212. lend – borrow

213. let – hire

213. liberate – enslave

214. literal – figurative

215. loose – tight

216. lose – find

217. major – minor

218. many – few

219. masculine – feminine

220. material – spiritual  

221. maximum – minimum

222. memory – oblivion

223. mild – severe, stern

224. miser – spendthrift

225. monogamy – polygamy

226. monotony – variety, diversity

227. naïve – sophisticated

228. narrow – broad

229. native – foreign

230. natural – artificial

231. negative – positive

232. neutral – partial

233. observe – reverse

234. odd – even

235. offer – refuse

236. often – seldom

237. omission – commission

238. optimistic – pessimistic

239. oral – written

240. oriental – occidental

241. original – duplicate, copy

242. ostensible – actual

243. partly – wholly

244. permanent – temporary

245. permit – prohibit

246. pleasure – pain

247. practice – theory

248. pragmatic – idealistic

249. praise – blame

250. precede – succeed

251. pride – humility

252. profit – loss

253. progress – regress

254. progressive – retrograde

255. promote – demote

256. public – private

257. quiet – noisy

258. queer – normal

259. rash – cautious, careful

260. rapid – slow, leisurely

261. recede – advance

262. relative – absolute

263. reluctant – ready, willing

264. reserved – sociable

265. resist – submit

266. retail – wholesale

267. reward – punish

268. rigid – flexible

269. ripe – raw

270. rise – fall, set

271. rough – smooth

272.  rude – polite

273. sacred – secular, profane

274. safe – risky, dangerous

275. saint – sinner

276. servant – master

277. sharp – blunt

278. simple – complex

279. complicated- naive

280. sink – swim, float

281. smile – frown

282. sober – drunk, rash

283. solid – liquid

284. straight – crooked, curved

285. strait – broad

286. strange – familiar

287. subjective – objective

288. succeed – fail

289. sure – doubtful

290. sweet – bitter, sour

291. sympathy – antipathy

292. tall – short

293. tense – relaxed

294. terrestrial – celestial

295. thick – thin

296. tight – loose, slack

297. top – bottom

298. tranquil – disturbed, agitated

299. transparent – opaque

300. triumph – defeat

301. trivial – important

302. true – false

303. unite – separate

304. upper – lower

305. upright – dishonest

306. urban – rural

307. urbane – rude, uncultured

308. vacant – occupied

309. vague – clear, definite

310. vertical – horizontal

311. victory – defeat

312. virtue – vice

313. voluntary – compulsory, involuntary

314. wake – sleep

315. wax – wane

316. wealthy – poor

317. wide – narrow

318. win – lose

319. wise – foolish

320. zenith – nadir

321. noble- ignoble

322. Obey-defy