Grammar
81 Synonyms and Antonyms
As you work with your draft, you will want to pay particular attention to the words you have chosen. Do they express exactly what you are trying to convey? Can you choose better, more effective words? Familiarity with synonyms and antonyms can be helpful in answering these questions.
Synonyms
Synonyms are words that have the same, or almost the same, meaning as another word. You can say an “easy task” or a “simple task” because easy and simple are synonyms. You can say Hong Kong is a “large city” or a “metropolis” because city and metropolis are synonyms.
However, it is important to remember that not all pairs of words in the English language are so easily interchangeable. The slight but important differences in meaning between synonyms can make a big difference in your writing. For example, the words boring and insipid may have similar meanings, but the subtle differences between the two will affect the message your writing conveys. The word insipid evokes a scholarly and perhaps more pretentious message than boring.
The English language is full of pairs of words that have subtle distinctions between them. All writers, professionals and beginners alike, face the challenge of choosing the most appropriate synonym to best convey their ideas. When you pay particular attention to synonyms in your writing, it comes across to your reader. The sentences become much more clear and rich in meaning.
Exercise
Replace the underlined words in the paragraph with appropriate synonyms. Write the new paragraph on your own sheet of paper. Once complete, please share with a classmate and compare your answers.
The most difficult undertaking of Brunelleschi’s career was the dome of Florence Cathedral, which took sixteen years to construct. A major blow to the progress of the construction happened in 1428. Brunelleschi had designed a special ship to carry the one hundred tons of marble needed for the dome. He felt this would be the most inexpensive way to transport the marble, but the unthinkable happened. The ship went down to the bottom of the water, taking all the marble with it to the bottom of the river. Brunelleschi was really sad. Nevertheless, he did not give up. He held true to his vision of the completed dome. Filippo Brunelleschi completed construction of the dome of Florence Cathedral in 1446. His influence on artists and architects alike was felt strongly during his lifetime and can still be felt in this day and age.
Exercise
On your own sheet of paper, write a sentence with each of the following words that illustrates the specific meaning of each synonym. Once complete, please share with a classmate and compare your answers.
- leave, abandon
- mad, insane
- outside, exterior
- poor, destitute
- quiet, peaceful
- riot, revolt
- rude, impolite
- talk, conversation
- hug, embrace
- home, residence
Antonyms
Antonyms are words that have the opposite meaning of a given word. The study of antonyms will not only help you choose the most appropriate word as you write; it will also sharpen your overall sense of language. The following table lists common words and their antonyms.
| Word | Antonym | Word | Antonym |
|---|---|---|---|
| absence | presence | frequent | seldom |
| accept | refuse | harmful | harmless |
| accurate | inaccurate | horizontal | vertical |
| advantage | disadvantage | imitation | genuine |
| ancient | modern | inhabited | uninhabited |
| abundant | scarce | inferior | superior |
| artificial | natural | intentional | accidental |
| attractive | repulsive | justice | injustice |
| borrow | lend | knowledge | ignorance |
| bravery | cowardice | landlord | tenant |
| create | destroy, demolish | likely | unlikely |
| bold | timid, meek | minority | majority |
| capable | incapable | miser | spendthrift |
| combine | separate | obedient | disobedient |
| conceal | reveal | optimist | pessimist |
| common | rare | permanent | temporary |
| decrease | increase | plentiful | scarce |
| definite | indefinite | private | public |
| despair | hope | prudent | imprudent |
| discourage | encourage | qualified | unqualified |
| employer | employee | satisfactory | unsatisfactory |
| expand | contract | tame | wild |
| forget | remember | vacant | occupied |
Exercise
Correct the following sentences by replacing the underlined words with an antonym. Write the antonym on your own sheet of paper.
- The pilot who landed the plane was a coward because no one was injured.
- Even though the botany lecture was two hours long, Gerard found it incredibly dull.
- My mother says it is impolite to say thank you like you really mean it.
- Although I have learned a lot of information through textbooks, it is life experience that has given me ignorance.
- When our instructor said the final paper was compulsory, it was music to my ears!
- My only virtues are coffee, video games, and really loud music.
- Elvin was so bold when he walked in the classroom that he sat in the back row and did not participate.
- Maria thinks elephants who live in freedom have a sad look in their eyes.
- The teacher filled her students’ minds with gloomy thoughts about their futures.
- The guest attended to every one of our needs.
Exercise: Writing Application
Write a paragraph that describes your favorite dish or food. Use as many synonyms as you can in the description, even if it seems too many. Be creative. Consult a thesaurus, and take this opportunity to use words you have never used before. Be prepared to share your paragraph.
Text Attributions
- This chapter was adapted from “Synonyms and Antonyms” in English for Business Success by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution is under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence. Adapted by Allison Kilgannon.
