Sunday, April 7, 2013

Words that mean the opposite of what they mean

Here's an article on "contronyms," words like "cleave" that have two meanings which are opposites --to cling, and to separate.

The one that most drives me nuts is "seeded," to sow with seeds, and to take the seeds out.

Alicia
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4 comments:

  1. JennyApril 8, 2013 at 9:49 AM

    Sanction is the one that most annoys me. It can mean either approval or strong dissapproval.

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  2. UnknownApril 8, 2013 at 3:43 PM

    This isn't quite the same thing. Maybe this type of expression has a different name. But why in the world do "flammable" and "inflammable" mean the same thing? They sound like they should be opposites!

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  3. Stephen KozeniewskiApril 10, 2013 at 8:10 AM

    Citation has always bugged the heck out of me.

    ReplyDelete
  4. AliciaApril 13, 2013 at 5:42 AM

    Linda, that one could be dangerous!

    Overlook is another, like "oversight".
    Alicia

    ReplyDelete