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REET Level 1 & 2 · Hindi

Vilom Shabd (विलोम शब्द, Antonyms)

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विलोम (Vilom) (antonym) words carry a meaning that is exactly opposite to a given word. REET regularly asks you to pick the correct antonym of a word, and the options often deliberately include a synonym from the same word-family, to create confusion between antonym and synonym.

  • 3 questions in REET 2024
  • Class 6-8 depth
  • 7 min read
Verified 17 September 2026

How REET asks this

All three REET 2024 questions gave a word directly and asked for its antonym (संन्यासी (sanyasi), अनुकूल (anukool), मुक्त (mukt)). In each, one option was deliberately a synonym of the original word, not its antonym — for example, among the options for ‘मुक्त (mukt)’ (free), ‘मोक्ष (moksha)’ and ‘निर्वाण (nirvaan)’ were included, which are actually synonyms of ‘liberation’, not antonyms. So every option needs to be checked carefully to see whether it truly gives the opposite meaning.

What are antonyms (विलोम (vilom) shabd)?

Words whose meaning is completely opposite to a given word are called विलोम (vilom) or विपरीतार्थक (vipreetarthak) (antonym) words — for example, the antonym of ‘दिन (din)’ (day) is ‘रात (raat)’ (night), and of ‘सुख (sukh)’ (happiness) is ‘दुख (dukh)’ (sorrow). Hindi mainly forms antonyms in two ways: first, through a completely different word (like राजा-रंक (raja-rank), king-pauper), and second, by adding a negating prefix to the original word (a, an, ni, vi, dur, ku), as in ज्ञान (gyaan)-अज्ञान (agyaan) (knowledge-ignorance), आस्तिक-नास्तिक (aastik-naastik) (believer-non-believer).

In REET-style questions, the biggest challenge is that the options include synonyms of the original word itself, meant to confuse the candidate. For instance, the correct antonym of ‘मुक्त (mukt)’ (free) is ‘बद्ध (baddh)’ (bound), but the options included words like ‘मोक्ष (moksha)’ and ‘निर्वाण (nirvaan)’, which are actually synonyms of ‘mukti’ (liberation) and don’t give an opposite sense at all.

Another point worth noting — some words can have more than one antonym depending on context. For instance, when ‘गुरु (guru)’ means ‘heavy’, its antonym is ‘लघु (laghu)’; but when ‘गुरु (guru)’ means ‘teacher’, its antonym is considered ‘शिष्य (shishya)’ (student). In such cases, decide which sense the word is being used in only after reading the context of the sentence or passage — only then can you pick the correct antonym. In REET, such context-dependent words are usually given within a passage itself, so read the sentence carefully before looking at the options.

So while memorising antonyms, always keep both the precise meaning of the original word and its context in mind, so that you can easily avoid misleading options in the exam.

Antonym-pairs asked in REET

WordCorrect antonymTrap option (a synonym, not the antonym)
संन्यासी (sanyasi) (ascetic)गृहस्थ (grihasth) (householder)jangal vaasi (forest dweller), upvan vaasi (garden dweller), sadaachaari (well-behaved) — none of these give an opposite sense
अनुकूल (anukool) (favourable)प्रतिकूल (pratikool) (unfavourable)अनुसार (anusaar), अनुरूप (anuroop) (these are actually synonyms of ‘अनुकूल (anukool)’)
मुक्त (mukt) (free)बद्ध (baddh) (bound)मोक्ष (moksha), निर्वाण (nirvaan), कैवल्य (kaivalya) (these are synonyms of ‘mukti’, not its antonym)

Two ways of forming antonyms — in detail

The first method is to add a negating prefix to the original word, as seen above — this method mostly applies to tatsam (Sanskrit-derived) words and is relatively easy to guess. The second method is to use an entirely different word, where the original word and its antonym have no linguistic (morphological) relationship at all, as in राजा-रंक (raja-rank), दिन (din)-रात (raat) (day-night), अमीर-गरीब (amir-gareeb) (rich-poor) — these have to be memorised directly as word-pairs, since they can’t be guessed by any prefix rule.

REET tests both kinds of antonyms, so it’s a better strategy while preparing to build two separate lists — one for prefix-based antonyms (ज्ञान (gyaan)-अज्ञान (agyaan), आस्तिक-नास्तिक (aastik-naastik)) and another for antonyms formed from completely different words (राजा-रंक (raja-rank), शत्रु (shatru)-मित्र (mitra)).

There is also a third, less common category, where changing masculine to feminine gender creates an appearance of opposite meaning (like राजा-रानी (raja-rani), king-queen), but grammatically this is a change of gender, not an antonym — because the core meaning of both words (ruler) is the same, only the gender differs. In the exam, such options should be carefully identified and ruled out, because at first glance they can look like antonyms.

While preparing, it’s important to understand the meaning of each word alongside its antonym, because memorising word-pairs without understanding meaning increases the chance of confusion once the context shifts, especially with words that have multiple meanings.

General rules for forming antonyms with prefixes

a/an prefix
ज्ञान (gyaan) → अज्ञान (agyaan) (knowledge → ignorance), आदि (aadi) → अनादि (anaadi) (beginning → beginningless), संतोष (santosh) → असंतोष (asantosh) (contentment → discontent)
ni prefix
कलंक (kalank) → निष्कलंक (nishkalank) (blemish → blemish-free), आशा (aasha) → निराशा (niraasha) (hope → hopelessness, using the ‘nir’ form)
vi prefix
स्वदेश (swadesh) → विदेश (videsh) (homeland → foreign land), ख्यात (khyaat) → विख्यात (vikhyaat)/कुख्यात (kukhyaat) (famous → renowned/notorious, depending on context)
dur/ku prefix
भाग्य (bhaagya) → दुर्भाग्य (durbhaagya) (fortune → misfortune), पुत्र (putra) → कुपुत्र (kuputra) (son → an unworthy son)

How to teach this to children

Activity

Write a word on the board and ask the class ‘Which word gives the exact opposite sense?’ — making it a pairing game helps students learn antonyms faster.

Teaching material

Antonym-pair cards (word on one side, antonym on the other) for a matching game work well for engaging practice in Classes 6-8.

Common misconception

Children often confuse synonyms with antonyms because both feel connected to the original word in some way — keep asking, ‘Does this word give exactly the opposite sense, or the same sense?’

Assessment

Have students write antonyms for 10 common words, then give 3 word-pairs and ask which pair shows antonyms and which shows synonyms — this cements the distinction.

Antonyms formed from entirely different words

WordAntonymNote
राजा (raja) (king)रंक (rank) (pauper)both words come from entirely different roots, unrelated to any prefix
शत्रु (shatru) (enemy)मित्र (mitra) (friend)different-root words describing a social relationship
जय (jai) (victory)पराजय (paraajay) (defeat)here the antonym is formed with the ‘para’ prefix
स्वर्ग (swarg) (heaven)नरक (narak) (hell)words from entirely different roots
आरंभ (aarambh) (beginning)अंत (ant) (end)different-root words, no shared prefix

Not every antonym is formed by adding a prefix — many word-pairs are historically built from entirely separate words and simply have to be memorised directly.

Memory trick / exam tip

In an antonym question, ask yourself about every option — ‘Does this word give exactly the opposite sense of the original word, or the same/similar sense?’ If it gives the same sense (like मोक्ष (moksha)/निर्वाण (nirvaan) being synonyms of mukti), strike that option out — this is the most common trap in REET.

Questions asked in REET 2024 (solved)

निर्देश : निम्नलिखित गद्यांश के आधार पर प्रश्न-संख्या 51 से 58 तक के उत्तर दीजिए । अधिकतर लोग विष्णु को पालनकर्त्ता मानकर उनकी उपासना करते हैं; विष्णु पालन करते हैं तथा महेश संहार करते हैं । इस पर विश्वास करके यदि कृषक को ही विष्णु कहें तो कोई अतिशयोक्ति न होगी । आकाश में उड़ने वाले स्वतंत्र पक्षी, पृथ्वी पर विचरण करने वाला मानव, यहाँ तक कि जलचर भी कृषकों पर ही निर्भर है । तपस्या भरा त्याग, अभिमान रहित उदारता और क्लांति रहित परिश्रम का यदि चित्र देखना है तो आप भारतीय कृषक को देखिए । वह स्वयं न खाकर दूसरों को खिलाता है, स्वयं न पहनकर दूसरों को वस्त्र देता है । उसके अनुपम त्याग की समानता कोई नहीं कर सकता है । भारतीय कृषक की आकृति में ऐसा प्रतीत होता है कि मानों कोई वीतराग संन्यासी हो । जिसे न दु:ख में दु:ख और न सुख में सुख की कामना है; जिसे न अज्ञान से आत्म-ग्लानि होती है और न दरिद्रता से दीनता । यह वह कर्मयोगी है जो फल प्राप्ति की इच्छा से रहित होकर कर्म में तल्लीन रहता है ।

Question 56

Among the following, the antonym (vilom) of the word 'संन्यासी' (ascetic) is

  1. Aजंगल वासी
  2. Bउपवन वासी
  3. Cगृहस्थ
  4. Dसदाचारी

Explanation

‘संन्यासी’ वह है जो गृहस्थ जीवन त्यागकर वैराग्य धारण कर लेता है, इसलिए इसका विलोम ‘गृहस्थ’ (घर-परिवार में रहने वाला) है। ‘जंगल वासी’, ‘उपवन वासी’ या ‘सदाचारी’ इसके विपरीत अर्थ नहीं देते।

निम्नलिखित गद्यांश के आधार पर प्रश्न संख्या 31 से 40 तक के उत्तर लिखिए : भारतवर्ष पर प्रकृति की विशेष कृपा रही है । यहाँ पर सभी ऋतुएँ समय पर आती हैं और पर्याप्त काल तक रहती हैं । ऋतुएँ अपने अनुकूल फल-फूलों का सृजन करती हैं । धूप और वर्षा के समान अधिकार के कारण यह भूमि शस्यश्यामला हो जाती है । यहाँ का नगाधिराज हिमालय कवियों को सदा से प्रेरणा देता रहा है और मुक्ति पाने के इच्छुक व्यक्तियों के लिए यहाँ की नदियाँ मोक्षदायिनी समझी जाती रही हैं । यहाँ कृत्रिम धूप और रोशनी की आवश्यकता नहीं पड़ती । यद्यपि भारतीय मनीषी जंगल में रहना पसंद करते थे तथापि वे लोक-व्यवहारों से भी परिचित थे । आज भी वृक्षों में पानी देना एक धार्मिक कार्य समझते हैं । सूर्य और चन्द्र दर्शन शुभ माने जाते हैं ।

Question 40

The antonym of the word 'अनुकूल' (favorable) is –

  1. Aदुकूल
  2. Bअनुसार
  3. Cप्रतिकूल
  4. Dअनुरूप

Explanation

‘अनुकूल’ का अर्थ है पक्ष में या अनुरूप; इसका विलोम ‘प्रतिकूल’ (विपरीत) है। ‘अनुसार’ और ‘अनुरूप’ समानार्थी भाव वाले हैं तथा ‘दुकूल’ का अर्थ वस्त्र है।

निर्देश : निम्नलिखित गद्यांश के आधार पर प्रश्न संख्या 31-40 तक के उत्तर दीजिए : आम आदमी के लिए विज्ञान का मतलब क्या है ? विज्ञान मानव सभ्यता और संस्कृति का एक रूप है । आधुनिक विज्ञान ने इस नैसर्गिक सादगी व सौन्दर्य को हाशिए पर डाल कर विज्ञान को एक औपचारिक ढाँचे में कैद कर लिया है । विज्ञान एक औजार बन गया है जिससे प्रकृति के रहस्यों को खोलने की कोशिश की जाती हैं । इस प्रक्रिया में आम इंसान का संबंध इससे कट गया है । ‘विज्ञान पूर्वाग्रहों से मुक्त ज्ञान का भण्डार है’- ऐसा कहा जाता है । विज्ञान को विकास से जोड़ा जाता है । यह सरासर गलत है । जिन आदिवासियों ने सदियों प्रकृति के साथ सम्मानजनक रिश्ता बनाए रखा, आज हमने उन्हें ‘अविकसित’ मान लिया है । मानव का मानव से संबंध हानि-लाभ पर निर्धारित हो रहा है ।

Question 37

The antonym of the word 'मुक्त' (free/liberated) is

  1. Aमोक्ष
  2. Bनिर्वाण
  3. Cकैवल्य
  4. Dबद्ध

Explanation

‘मुक्त’ का अर्थ है बंधन से छूटा हुआ; इसका विलोम ‘बद्ध’ (बँधा हुआ) है। मोक्ष, निर्वाण और कैवल्य तो ‘मुक्ति’ के ही समानार्थी शब्द हैं, विलोम नहीं।

Practice questions

Question 1

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'आस्तिक' is

  1. Aधार्मिक
  2. Bनास्तिक
  3. Cआध्यात्मिक
  4. Dभक्त

Explanation

One who believes in God is called ‘आस्तिक (aastik)’, and one who does not is called ‘नास्तिक (naastik)’ — these are directly opposite words. धार्मिक (Dhaarmik), आध्यात्मिक (aadhyaatmik) and भक्त (bhakt) all carry a sense connected to belief, not its antonym.

Question 2

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'उन्नति' is

  1. Aप्रगति
  2. Bविकास
  3. Cअवनति
  4. Dसमृद्धि

Explanation

‘उन्नति (Unnati)’ means rising up / progress, and its antonym is ‘अवनति (avanati)’ (decline, falling down). प्रगति (Pragati), विकास (vikaas) and समृद्धि (samriddhi) are all words with a similar sense to ‘उन्नति (unnati)’, not its opposite.

Question 3

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'क्रूर' is

  1. Aनिर्दयी
  2. Bदयालु
  3. Cकठोर
  4. Dउग्र

Explanation

‘क्रूर (Kroor)’ means merciless/harsh by nature, and its antonym is ‘दयालु (dayaalu)’ (compassionate). निर्दयी (Nirdayi), कठोर (kathor) and उग्र (ugra) are all synonyms of ‘क्रूर (kroor)’, not its antonym.

Question 4

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'एकता' is

  1. Aअनेकता
  2. Bमित्रता
  3. Cसंगठन
  4. Dसहयोग

Explanation

‘एकता (Ekta)’ means coming together as one, and its direct antonym is ‘अनेकता (anekta)’ (fragmentation/diversity). मित्रता (Mitrata), संगठन (sangathan) and सहयोग (sahyog) are all close in sense to ‘एकता (ekta)’, not opposite to it.

Question 5

The correct vilom (antonym) of the word 'निंदा' is

  1. Aआलोचना
  2. Bस्तुति
  3. Cआरोप
  4. Dव्यंग्य

Explanation

‘निंदा (Ninda)’ means to criticise/defame, and its antonym is ‘स्तुति (stuti)’ (praise). आलोचना (Aalochana) and आरोप (aarop) are words close to ‘निंदा (ninda)’ in sense, not its antonym.

Question 6

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'गुरु' (heavy) is

  1. Aआचार्य
  2. Bलघु
  3. Cविद्वान
  4. Dश्रेष्ठ

Explanation

When ‘गुरु (guru)’ means ‘heavy/big’, its antonym is ‘लघु (laghu)’ (light/small). Note that ‘गुरु (guru)’ has another meaning, ‘teacher’, in which this word isn’t used in antonym questions.

Question 7

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'सजीव' is

  1. Aजीवित
  2. Bचेतन
  3. Cनिर्जीव
  4. Dसचेत

Explanation

‘सजीव (Sajeev)’ means having life, and its direct antonym is ‘निर्जीव (nirjeev)’ (lifeless). जीवित (Jeevit), चेतन (chetan) and सचेत (sachet) are all words close in sense to ‘सजीव (sajeev)’.

Question 8

When asked for the vilom (antonym) of a word, the options may also include a paryayvachi (synonym) of the same word. The best strategy to avoid this trap is

  1. Aसबसे पहला विकल्प चुन लेना
  2. Bहर विकल्प को मूल शब्द के साथ रखकर जाँचना कि वह उल्टा भाव देता है या वही भाव
  3. Cसबसे लंबा शब्द चुनना
  4. Dविकल्पों को बिना पढ़े अनुमान लगाना

Explanation

The correct strategy in antonym questions is to weigh every option against the meaning of the original word — whichever option gives exactly the opposite sense is the correct antonym, however similar the others may look.

Question 9

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'सजल' is

  1. Aनिर्जल
  2. Bजलमय
  3. Cआर्द्र
  4. Dगीला

Explanation

‘सजल (Sajal)’ means moist/filled with water, and its antonym is ‘निर्जल (nirjal)’ (waterless, dry). जलमय (Jalmay), आर्द्र (aardra) and गीला (geela) are all words close in sense to ‘सजल (sajal)’.

Question 10

The vilom (antonym) of the word 'आदि' is

  1. Aप्रारंभ
  2. Bअंत
  3. Cमध्य
  4. Dअनादि

Explanation

‘आदि (Aadi)’ means the beginning, and its common antonym is ‘अंत (ant)’ (the end). Note that ‘अनादि (anaadi)’ means ‘that which has no beginning’ — this is not the opposite of ‘आदि (aadi)’ but a different, related adjective.

Frequently asked questions

What are विलोम (vilom) (antonym) words?+

Words whose meaning is completely opposite to a given word are called विलोम (vilom) or विपरीतार्थक (vipreetarthak) words, such as ‘सुख (sukh)’ (happiness) and its antonym ‘दुख (dukh)’ (sorrow).

How many REET questions come from antonyms?+

REET 2024 had 3 questions from this topic, all directly giving a word and asking for its antonym. It is a regular, scoring topic in Bhasha-I/II every year.

What is the difference between antonyms and synonyms?+

Synonyms carry the same or nearly the same meaning, while antonyms carry a completely opposite meaning — for example, the synonym of ‘सुख (sukh)’ is ‘aanand’, and its antonym is ‘दुख (dukh)’.

Which are the main prefixes used to form antonyms?+

Negating prefixes like a, an, ni/nir, vi, dur, ku are commonly added to a word to form its antonym, as in ज्ञान (gyaan)-अज्ञान (agyaan) and आशा (aasha)-निराशा (niraasha).

Can a word have more than one antonym?+

Yes, when a word has different meanings in different contexts, its antonyms can differ too — for example, the antonym of ‘गुरु (guru)’ (heavy) is ‘लघु (laghu)’, but the antonym of ‘गुरु (guru)’ (teacher) is ‘शिष्य (shishya)’.

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Paryayvachi Shabd (Synonyms)

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  • 17 September 2026 — English page published — mirrors the fact-checked Hindi page, independently bilingual-accuracy checked