List of 500+ English Opposite Words


  • afraid – brave
  • after – before
  • ancient – modern
  • ancestor – descendant
  • agree – refuse
  • about – exactly
  • amateur – professional
  • already – not yet
  • always – never
  • answer – ask
  • answer – question
  • antonym – synonym
  • above – below
  • absence – presence
  • amuse – bore
  • ancestor – descendant
  • angel – devil
  • animal – human
  • annoy – satisfy
  • against – for
  • alike – different
  • alive – dead
  • all – none
  • allow – forbid
  • abundance – lack
  • accept – refuse
  • accidental – intentional
  • active – lazy
  • add – subtract
  • admit – deny
  • adult – child
  • advanced – elementary
  • affirmative – negative
  • apart – together


  • approximately – exactly
  • argue – agree
  • arrival – departure
  • beauty – ugliness
  • before – after
  • begin – end
  • beginning – end
  • behind – in front of
  • below – above
  • best – worst
  • better – worse
  • beautiful – ugly
  • big – small
  • birth – death
  • bitter – sweet
  • black – white
  • blunt – sharp
  • body – soul
  • bore – amuse
  • correct – wrong
  • courage – fear
  • courageous – cowardly
  • cowardly – brave
  • create – destroy
  • cruel – human
  • cry – whisper
  • cry – laugh
  • damage – repair
  • danger – security
  • dangerous – safe
  • dark – light
  • boring – exciting
  • ask – answer
  • asleep – awake
  • attack – defend
  • attack – defense
  • attic – cellar
  • autumn – spring
  • awake – asleep
  • awful – nice
  • back – in front of
  • background – foreground
  • backward – forward
  • bad – good
  • bad luck – fortune
  • cold – heat
  • come – go
  • comedy – drama
  • complicated – simple
  • compliment – insult
  • compulsory – voluntary
  • connect – separate
  • consonant – vowel
  • constant – changeable
  • construction – destruction
  • continue – interrupt
  • cool – warm
  • daughter – son
  • dawn – dusk
  • day – night
  • dead – alive
  • death – birth
  • human – animal
  • humane – cruel
  • humid – dry
  • hungry – thirsty
  • husband – wife
  • in front of – back
  • ignore – notice
  • ill – healthy
  • immigrate – emigrate
  • immigration – emigration
  • import – export
  • in – out
  • include – exclude
  • female – male
  • few – many
  • final – first
  • find – lose
  • finish – begin
  • finish – start
  • first – final
  • fix – break
  • flat – hilly
  • floor – ceiling
  • follow – lead
  • forbid – allow
  • for – against
  • foreground – background
  • foreign – domestic
  • increase – reduce
  • innocent – guilty
  • land – water
  • large – small
  • last – first
  • late – early
  • laugh – cry
  • lazy – active
  • lead – follow
  • learn – teach
  • leave – arrive
  • left – right
  • lend – borrow
  • less – more
  • let – forbid
  • lie – stand
  • life – death
  • light – dark
  • light – heavy
  • inside – outside
  • insult – compliment
  • intelligent – silly
  • intentional – accidental
  • be interested in – bore
  • interesting – boring
  • interrupt – continue
  • junior – senior
  • kind – cruel
  • lack – abundance
  • lady – gentleman
  • land – take off
  • like – hate
  • liquid – solid
  • little – big
  • little – much
  • live – die
  • long – short


  • lose – win
  • loser – winner
  • loud – quiet
  • presence – absence
  • present – past
  • pretty – ugly
  • private – public
  • probably – certainly
  • professional – amateur
  • protect – attack
  • protection – attack
  • south – north
  • special – general
  • spring – autumn
  • stand – sit
  • start – stop
  • start – finish
  • stop – start
  • stand – lie
  • strange – normal
  • stranger – native
  • strict – gentle
  • strong – weak
  • student – teacher
  • stupid – clever
  • suburb – centre
  • succeed – fail
  • success – failure
  • subtract – add
  • sugar – salt
  • summer – winter
  • sun – moon
  • sunny – cloudy
  • true – false
  • trust – suspect
  • ugliness – beauty
  • ugly – beautiful
  • under – over
  • deep – shallow
  • defeat – victory
  • defence – attack
  • defend – attack
  • delicious – awful
  • deny – admit
  • depart – arrive
  • public – private
  • pull – push
  • pupil – teacher
  • push – pull
  • question – answer
  • quick – slow
  • quiet – loud
  • raise – lower
  • rainy – sunny
  • rear – front
  • receive – send
  • reduce – increase
  • love – hate
  • lovely – terrible
  • low – high
  • lower – raise
  • pleasant – awful
  • polite – rude
  • poor – rich
  • poverty – wealth
  • powerful – weak
  • refuse – agree
  • regret – satisfaction
  • remember – forget
  • repair – damage
  • reply – ask
  • reply – question
  • republic – dictatorship
  • rest – work
  • rich – poor
  • right – left
  • right – wrong
  • rise – sink
  • rough – gentle
  • rough – smooth
  • rude – polite
  • rural – urban
  • sad – happy
  • security – danger
  • seldom – often
  • sell – buy
  • send – receive
  • senior – junior
  • separate – connect
  • serious – funny
  • servant – master
  • set free – arrest
  • shallow – deep
  • sharp – blunt
  • shelter – exposure
  • short – long
  • shout – whisper
  • shut – open
  • sick – healthy
  • silent – noisy
  • silly – intelligent
  • simple – complicated
  • sink – rise
  • single – married
  • sister – brother
  • sadness – happiness
  • safe – dangerous
  • safety – danger
  • salt – sugar
  • same – different
  • satisfaction – regret
  • satisfy – annoy
  • save – spend
  • scream – whisper
  • sit – stand
  • slim – fat
  • slow – fast
  • small – big
  • smooth – rough
  • soft – hard
  • solid – liquid
  • some – many
  • sometimes – often
  • son – daughter
  • soul – body
  • sour – sweet
  • departure – arrival
  • descendant – ancestor
  • descent – ascent
  • desperate – hopeful
  • destroy – build


  • destruction – construction
  • devil – angel
  • dictatorship – republic
  • die – live
  • different – alike
  • difficult – easy
  • dirty – clean
  • disease – health
  • distant – near
  • divide – unite
  • division – unity
  • borrow – lend
  • cheap – expensive
  • child – adult
  • children – parents
  • clean – dirty
  • clear – cloudy
  • clever – stupid
  • close – open
  • closed – open
  • cloudy – clear
  • cold – hot
  • arrive – depart
  • artificial – natural
  • ascent – descent
  • divorce – marry
  • divorce – marriage
  • divorced – married
  • domestic – foreign
  • down – up
  • downstairs – upstairs
  • drama – comedy
  • dry – humid
  • dull – interesting
  • dusk – dawn
  • early – late
  • east – west
  • easy – difficult
  • elementary – advanced
  • bottom – top
  • careful – careless
  • careless – careful
  • catch – miss
  • ceiling – floor
  • cellar – attic
  • centre – outskirts
  • certainly – probably
  • changeable – constant
  • emigrate – immigrate
  • emigration – immigration
  • empty – full
  • end – begin
  • end – beginning
  • ending – beginning
  • enemy – friend
  • enjoy – hate
  • boy – girl
  • brave – cowardly
  • break – fix
  • broad – narrow
  • brother – sister
  • build – destroy
  • busy – lazy
  • buy – sell
  • calm – excited
  • enter – leave
  • entrance – exit
  • equal – different
  • even – odd
  • evening – morning
  • everybody – nobody
  • everything – nothing
  • exactly – approximately
  • excited – calm
  • exciting – boring
  • exclude – include
  • exit – entrance
  • expensive – cheap
  • export – import
  • exposure – shelter
  • extreme – moderate
  • fail – succeed
  • failure – success
  • false – true
  • far – near
  • fast – slow
  • fat – slim
  • fear – courage
  • foreigner – native
  • forget – remember
  • form – destroy
  • fortune – bad luck
  • forward – backward
  • master – servant
  • maximum – minimum
  • mean – generous
  • melt – freeze
  • men – women
  • mend – break
  • mess – order
  • midnight – noon
  • minimum – maximum
  • minor – major
  • miss – hit
  • miss – catch
  • moderate – extreme
  • modern – ancient
  • monarchy – republic
  • free – arrest
  • freeze – melt
  • frequently – occasionally
  • fresh – old/stale
  • friend – enemy
  • front – rear
  • in front of – back
  • full – empty
  • funny – serious
  • future – past
  • general – particular
  • bad luck – good luck
  • good luck – bad luck
  • major – minor
  • male – female
  • man – woman
  • many – few
  • marriage – divorce
  • married – divorced
  • marry – divorce
  • moon – sun


  • unite – divide
  • unity – division
  • up – down
  • upstairs – downstairs
  • urban – rural
  • useful – useless
  • hot – cold
  • huge – tiny
  • wealthy – poor
  • wedding – divorce
  • well- ill
  • west – east
  • wet – dry
  • whisper – scream
  • white – black
  • whole – part
  • wide – narrow
  • useless – useful
  • vacant – occupied
  • valley – mountain
  • vertical – horizontal
  • victory – defeat
  • plant – harvest
  • plenty – lack
  • generous – mean
  • more – less
  • morning – evening
  • mountain – valley
  • much – little
  • narrow – broad
  • nasty – nice
  • gentle – violent
  • gentleman – lady
  • giant – tiny
  • girl – boy
  • give – take
  • village – town
  • violent – gentle
  • visitor – host
  • voluntary – compulsory
  • vowel – consonant
  • war – peace
  • warm – cool
  • waste – save
  • water – land
  • weak – powerful
  • wealth – poverty
  • native – foreigner
  • natural – artificial
  • near – distant
  • negative – affirmative
  • nephew – niece
  • never – always
  • new – ancient
  • nice – awful
  • niece – nephew
  • night – day
  • no – yes
  • noisy – quiet
  • noon – midnight
  • none of – al lot of
  • normal – strange
  • north – south
  • not yet – already
  • nothing – everything
  • notice – ignore
  • now – then
  • occasionally – frequently
  • occupied – vacant
  • odd – even
  • off – on
  • often – seldom
  • old – modern
  • on – off
  • open – closed
  • open – closed
  • opponent – supporter
  • order – mess
  • ordinary – special
  • other – same
  • out – in
  • outside – inside
  • outskirts – centre
  • over – under
  • parents – children
  • part – whole
  • partial – total
  • particular – general
  • pass – fail
  • past – future
  • peace – war
  • permit – forbid
  • go – come
  • good – bad
  • grown-up – child
  • guest – host
  • guilty – innocent
  • happiness – sadness
  • happy – sad
  • handsome – ugly
  • hard – easy
  • harvest – plant
  • hate – enjoy
  • health – disease
  • healthy – ill
  • heat – cold
  • heaven – hell
  • heavy – light
  • hell – heaven
  • here – there
  • high – deep
  • high – low
  • hilly – flat
  • hit – miss
  • hopeful – desperate
  • hopeless – hopeful
  • horizontal – vertical
  • host – guest
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