Antonyms — Patwari English Grammar
Antonyms give the opposite meaning of a word, and in competitive exams they are often asked from within an unseen passage — such as 'absent' being the antonym of 'present'. This page gives an essential antonym list, the rules for forming antonyms with prefixes, and the strategy for choosing the correct option, all in one place.
- Class 6-8 grammar level
- 8 min read
What is an Antonym?
An antonym is a word whose meaning is completely opposite to a given word's meaning — for example, the antonym of 'hot' is 'cold'.
Antonyms are of three kinds: gradable (where there are degrees in between, like hot–warm–cold), complementary (where there is no middle state, like present–absent, alive–dead), and relational (where the two words are relative to each other, like buy–sell, teacher–student). Competitive exams mostly ask common gradable and complementary antonyms.
Useful Exam-Level Antonym Pairs
| Word | Antonym |
|---|---|
| Present | Absent |
| Construction | Destruction |
| Brave | Cowardly |
| Rich | Poor |
| Ancient | Modern |
| Praise | Criticise / Blame |
| Increase | Decrease |
| Victory | Defeat |
| Generous | Stingy / Miserly |
| Honest | Dishonest |
| Fearless | Frightened / Scared |
| Guilty | Innocent |
Some of these words can have more than one acceptable antonym, such as both 'frightened' and 'scared' for 'fearless'.
How to Avoid Wrong Options
One of the distractor options is often a synonym, or linked to another meaning of the word, rather than its antonym — such as giving an option related to the 'gift' sense of 'present', which can be confused with 'absent'.
When two options give almost the same meaning (near-synonyms) and both look like a correct antonym (such as frightened/scared), don't panic — in such cases the language sometimes accepts more than one near-synonymous antonym.
Forming Antonyms with a Prefix
In English, many antonyms are formed by adding a prefix to the base word — for example, 'unhappy' from 'happy', 'incorrect' from 'correct'. The most common negative prefixes are: un-, in-, im-, dis-, non-, mis-, il-, ir-.
There is no single fixed rule for their use — it depends on the base word. 'im-' usually comes with words starting with 'm' or 'p' (possible→impossible, patient→impatient), 'il-' with words starting with 'l' (legal→illegal), and 'ir-' with words starting with 'r' (regular→irregular).
It's important to remember that this rule doesn't work for every word — for instance, the antonym of 'good' is not 'ungood' but an entirely different word, 'bad'. So apply the prefix rule only when it is the standard, established form.
Common Antonyms Formed with Prefixes
| Base word | Prefix | Antonym |
|---|---|---|
| Happy | un- | Unhappy |
| Agree | dis- | Disagree |
| Possible | im- | Impossible |
| Legal | il- | Illegal |
| Regular | ir- | Irregular |
| Sense | non- | Nonsense |
| Understand | mis- | Misunderstand |
| Patient | im- | Impatient |
| Honest | dis- | Dishonest |
| Complete | in- | Incomplete |
The choice of prefix depends on the base word's first letter — recognising this pattern helps you correctly guess the antonyms of new words too.
The Scale of Comparison in Gradable Antonyms
Gradable antonyms are ones that have a step-by-step scale between them — for example, the temperature scale runs 'hot', 'warm', 'cool', 'cold'. Here the direct antonym of 'hot' is 'cold', but 'warm' and 'cool' in between are also part of the same scale, so when choosing the 'exact' antonym of one, it's important to identify the two extremes of the scale.
In competitive exams, questions usually focus on the two extreme ends of the scale (like hot-cold, big-small); the finer distinction in the middle (warm-cool) is asked less often — so it is a more profitable strategy to first memorise the clear, far-apart antonyms.
More Useful Antonym Pairs (Set 2)
| Word | Antonym |
|---|---|
| Arrive | Depart |
| Accept | Refuse / Reject |
| Wise | Foolish |
| Bold | Timid |
| Cheerful | Gloomy |
| Deep | Shallow |
| Expand | Contract |
| Fresh | Stale |
| Genuine | Fake |
| Harsh | Gentle |
Learning these along with Set 1 makes it easy to solve both passage-based and direct vocabulary questions.
Examples of Relational Antonyms
Relational antonyms are word-pairs whose meanings are relative to each other — one word's meaning is incomplete without the other, such as 'buy' and 'sell', 'teacher' and 'student', 'husband' and 'wife', 'parent' and 'child'.
It's important to tell these apart from gradable and complementary antonyms — here 'opposite' doesn't mean 'hostile opposition' but rather 'two sides of the same relationship'. Questions on relational antonyms come up relatively less often in competitive exams, but it is useful to be able to recognise them as general knowledge.
Memory Trick / Exam Tip
Whenever two options seem to have the same meaning, instead of ruling both out, check whether they are both fully opposite to the base word's meaning — the language sometimes accepts such near-synonymous antonyms together, so instead of panicking, focus on the direction of the meaning (the opposite direction).
Frequently Asked Questions
How many types of antonym are there?+
There are mainly three types — gradable (hot-cold), complementary (present-absent) and relational (buy-sell).
Can a word have more than one antonym?+
Yes, for example both 'frightened' and 'scared' can be considered near-correct antonyms of 'fearless', since their meanings are nearly the same.
What is the difference between Antonym and Synonym?+
A synonym is a word with a similar meaning to another word, while an antonym is a word with the opposite meaning.
How do I solve antonym questions in a passage?+
First understand the contextual meaning of the underlined word, then choose the option that is completely opposite to that meaning, not just one that sounds different.
What is the rule for prefixes in forming antonyms?+
The correct prefix (un-, in-, im-, dis-, il-, ir-, non-, mis-) is chosen according to the first letter of the base word, but this rule doesn't apply to every word, so it's important to remember the standard, established form.
What are Gradable Antonyms?+
Antonym pairs that have a step-by-step scale between them, such as hot-warm-cool-cold — among these, only the two extreme words (hot-cold) are usually considered the 'direct antonym'.
What are Relational Antonyms?+
Word-pairs that represent two sides of the same relationship, such as buy-sell, teacher-student — in these, one word's meaning is incomplete without the other.