What is Antonyms?
Antonym questions give you a word and ask you to find the option that means the opposite. These questions test your vocabulary and your understanding of how words relate to each other.
Sometimes the opposite is obvious (hot/cold), but other times you need to think carefully about the precise meaning of the word to find its true opposite.
Step-by-Step Method
Understand the target word
Make sure you know exactly what the word means. Think about its precise definition.
Think of the opposite yourself
Before looking at the options, think of what the opposite would be. This gives you a target to match.
Check each option
Go through every answer and ask: is this the opposite of the target? Be careful of words that are merely different rather than opposite.
Choose the most opposite
The correct answer is the word that is most directly opposite, not just different or unrelated.
Worked Examples
Which word is most opposite in meaning to GENEROUS? (a) kind (b) wealthy (c) mean (d) poor
Working
- GENEROUS means willing to give freely.
- (a) kind – similar meaning, not opposite
- (b) wealthy – related to money but not opposite of generous
- (c) mean – unwilling to give, directly opposite
- (d) poor – about wealth, not generosity
Which word is most opposite in meaning to ANCIENT? (a) old (b) modern (c) broken (d) valuable
Working
- ANCIENT means very old, from long ago.
- (a) old – same meaning, not opposite
- (b) modern – means new or recent, directly opposite
- (c) broken – unrelated
- (d) valuable – unrelated
Common Mistakes
Choosing a word that is just different from the target rather than truly opposite.
The opposite must be on the other end of the same scale. “Happy” is opposite to “sad”, not “hungry”.
Being confused by words with multiple meanings and choosing the wrong opposite.
Think about which meaning of the target word is most common, then find its opposite.
Top Tips
- Think about scales: if the word is at one end (e.g. hot), the opposite is at the other end (cold).
- Practise common antonym pairs: big/small, fast/slow, light/dark, happy/sad.
- If you are unsure, try putting “not” in front of the target word – which option is closest to that?
- Watch out for trick options that are related but not opposite.
Ready to practise?
Put these techniques into action with our free practice papers.
Practise Verbal Reasoning Questions