Friday, June 30, 2006

autoantonyms

words that are their own antonyms
adumbrate
verb
• to clarify
• to cast a shadow over

aught
noun
• anything
• nothing

bill
noun
• invoice (e.g. in a restaurant)
• money; banknote

bolt
verb
• to secure in place
• to dash away suddenly

bound
adj./verb
• restrained (e.g. by rope)
• to spring; leap

buckle
verb
• to fasten
• to come undone; give way; collapse

cleave
verb
• to adhere; stick together
• to cut apart; divide

clip
verb
• to fasten together; hold tightly
• to cut apart; cut off (e.g. with shears)

comprise
verb
• to contain; include
• to be composed of; consist of

custom
adjective
• usual; normal
• special; unique

dust
verb
• to remove fine particles from (e.g. when cleaning)
• to sprinkle fine particles onto

fast
adverb
• fixed firmly in place
• moving quickly; speedy

fine
adjective
• just meets minimum standards; satisfactory
• considerably better than average; excellent

give out
verb
• to produce; distribute
• to stop producing; cease functioning

handicap
noun/verb
• advantage (e.g. in sport)
• disadvantage; disability

hold up
verb
• to support; cope
• to hinder; delay

impregnable
adjective
• impossible to enter (e.g. of a fortress)
• able to be impregnated

lease
verb
• to lend; rent out
• to borrow; hire

left
verb
• departed from
• remaining

let
verb
• to allow; grant permission
• to prevent (e.g. "without let or hindrance")

literally
adverb
• actually; really
• figuratively; virtually

model
noun
• archetype; example
• copy; replica

moot
adjective
• debatable; arguable
• academic; irrelevant

overlook
verb
• to examine; watch over
• to fail to notice; miss

oversight
noun
• watchful care; supervision
• overlooking; omission

peer
noun
• an equal; fellow (e.g. classmate)
• a nobleman; person of higher rank

put
adj./verb
• to begin to move hurriedly
• stationary (e.g. "stay put")

put out
verb
• to generate; produce
• to extinguish; put an end to

puzzle
verb
• to pose a problem
• to solve a problem

quantum
adjective
• very small (e.g. in Physics)
• very large (e.g. "quantum leap")

ravel
verb
• to tangle; complicate
• to disentangle; separate

rent
verb
• to lend; lease out
• to borrow; hire

resign
verb
• to quit; give up
• to sign up again

root
verb
• to remove completely
• to become firmly established

sanction
verb/noun
• to endorse; authorise
• a punitive action

sanguine
adjective
• murderous
• cheerfully optimistic

scan
verb
• to examine closely
• to glance at hastily

screen
verb
• to view; show
• to conceal; shield

seed
verb
• to remove seeds from
• to add seeds to

set
verb
• to fix in place
• to flow; move on

shank
noun
• latter part of a period of time
• early part of a period of time

skin
verb
• to cover with a skin
• to remove the skin

splice
verb
• to join together
• to cut in two

strike
verb
• to miss (e.g. in baseball)
• to hit; collide with

table
verb
• to propose; suggest
• to postpone; shelve

temper
verb
• to soften; mollify
• to strengthen (e.g. a metal)

trim
verb
• to cut pieces off (e.g. fingernails)
• to add to; ornament

weather
verb
• to withstand; stand up to
• to wear away

wind up
verb
• to start; prepare
• to end; conclude
more on autantonyms at funwithwords

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