ANTONYMY

2nd Group
 Members
1. Ade Irawan
2. Ayundi Gira Putri
3. Indriani Safitri
4. Redina Rizky Utami
5. Ririn Marini
6. Usamah
7. Yaumil Amini
 Definition
• Lyons (1977) defines “antonym” as the words
which are opposite in meaning and
“antonymy” as the oppositeness between
words.

An antonym is a word that means the opposite

of another word.
Some words can have more than one antonym.
 Example
Old Young

Tall Short

Beautiful Ugly

True False

Single Married

Thick Thin

Low Low
 Types of Antonymy

1. Gradable antonymy

2. Complementary antonymy

3. Converse antonymy
 Gradable Antonymy
1. they are gradable
2. are graded against different norms
3. usually the term for the higher degree, serves as
the cover term
e.g: big-small
good-big
 Complementary Antonymy

Forms of antonyms which truly represent oppositeness of

meaning.

The only two opposite possibilities and there is no middle

ground or scale that is involved between the two words.
1. There is no intermediate ground

2. The norm is absolute

3. There is no cover term or covered term.

e.g: male-female

alive-dead
 Converse Antonymy
Relational opposites
Egan (1968) describe these antonym pairs as pairs of words which
include such a relationship that one of them cannot be used without
suggesting the other.

In this relationship, one can not talk about A without B.

e.g: boyfriend-girlfriend

husband-wife
Reverse terms:
Reverse terms comprise adjectives and adverbs signifying a
quality and verbs and nouns signifying an act or state that
reverse or undo the quality, action or state of the other.
e.g: buy-sell
give-receive
come-go
 Boy—girl Boyfriend-girlfriend

Complementary Converse
(relational
opposites)
Different contexts or collocations also bring about different antonyms.

e.g. an old man --- a young man

an old house --- a modern/new house
a tall building --- a low building
a tall man --- a short man
fresh bread --- stale bread
fresh air --- stuffy air
fresh flower --- faded flower
fresh look --- tired look
Thank You