Synonyms and Antonyms

What are synonyms and antonyms?

Pretty, beautiful, handsome... What's the difference?

Why are synonyms and antonyms important?

How to use synonyms and antonyms to improve vocabulary?

How to use synonyms and antonyms to improve writing skills?

Click Here for Step-by-Step Rules, Stories and Exercises to Practice All English Tenses

In this article we are going to answer these questions.

Synonyms

A synonym is a word or expression that has the same or almost the same meaning as another.

Synonym examples:

awful / terrible
big / large
smart / clever
photograph / picture

Word origin: Greek, syn = same, onyma = a name

Short list of synonyms in English, listed by the part of speech

Nouns

belly / stomach
children / kids
disaster / catastrophe
earth / soil
father / dad
happiness / joy
instinct / intuition
mother / mom
present / gift
sunrise / dawn

Verbs

answer / reply
beat / defeat
behave / act
begin / start
close / shut
leave / exit
provide / supply
select / choose
shout / yell
speak / talk

Adjectives

big / large
complete / total
correct / right
crazy / mad
foolish / silly
happy / glad
hard / difficult
ill / sick
last / final
near / close
sad / unhappy
stable / steady

Adverbs

abroad / overseas
almost / nearly
badly / poorly
fast / quickly
intentionally / on purpose
out / outside
rarely / seldom
sometimes / occasionally
surely / for sure
very / highly / extremely

Prepositions

above / over
about / regarding / concerning
against / versus
below / beneath / under
by / via
despite / in spite of
in / into
off / away
until / till
with / including

Conjunctions

and / plus
because / since
but / yet
if / provided
once / as soon as

Interjections

hello / hi
gee / gosh
goodness / goodness me / my goodness
no / nope
oh Lord / good Lord
thanks / thank you
whoopee / yahoo / hooray
yes / yeah

Synonyms are not necessarily the same!

You see, they can be very similar, but they do not necessarily mean the same.

Here is a common example.

the following words are all synonyms. Their general meaning is "pleasant to look at."

There are however important nuances.

Look at the illustrations, read the definitions and see for yourself.

Pretty, beautiful, handsome... What's the difference?

Pretty	Beautiful	Handsome

Pretty = delicate and pleasant to look at.	Beautiful = (of a woman or girl) extremely pleasant to look at.	Handsome = (of a man) pleasant to look at.

Lovely	Ravishing	Good-looking

Lovely = (of someone that makes you have a strong feeling for them) graceful and very pleasant to look at.	Ravishing = very beautiful.	Good-looking = physically pleasant to look at.

Cute	Adorable	Gorgeous

Cute = (of someone young or something small) charming and pleasant to look at.	Adorable = very pleasant to look at and very easy to love.	Gorgeous = impressive and extremely pleasant to look at.

Here is another example to illustrate this point:

"To ask" means to say or write what you wish to happen.

"To request" means to say or write what you wish to happen, but it has a formal use.

In other words, you would use "ask" and "request" in different situations and contexts.

So it's not enough just to study a word's meaning and synonyms. You should also be aware of the subtle difference, nuances, and usage issues of each individual word.

Additional example:

One of the meanings of "hurt" is to "to be painful."

For example, "My back hurts like hell."

One synonym of "hurt" is "ache."

"To ache" means "to be painful, in a dull way." A dull pain means that it is not very strong, but it is continuous.

For example, "I've been standing for so long that now my feet ache."

So you see, "hurt" and "ache" are synonyms. Their meanings are indeed very similar, but not identical.

Antonyms

An antonym is a word that means the opposite of another word.

Antonym examples:

old / new
black / white
strong / weak
break / fix

Word origin: Greek, anti = opposite, onym = name

Short list of antonyms in English, listed by the part of speech

Nouns

day / night
east / west
enemy / friend
failure / success
guest / host
health / disease
question / answer
speaker / listener
summer / winter
top / bottom

Verbs

agree / disagree
arrive / leave
begin / end
fall asleep / wake up
find / lose
lend / borrow
love / hate
open / close
remember / forget
start / stop

Adjectives

asleep / awake
beautiful / ugly
big / small
black / white
cheap / expensive
dead / alive
dry / wet
easy / difficult
full / empty
good / bad
hot / cold
intelligent / stupid
sad / happy
sick / healthy
thin / fat

Adverbs

always / never
angrily / happily
fast / slowly
here / there
inside / outside
likely / unlikely
near / far
partly / fully
seemingly / actually
yesterday / tomorrow

Prepositions

above / below
against / for
before / after
in / out
like / unlike
on / off
plus / minus
to / from
towards / away
with / without

Conjunctions

and / or
therefore / nevertheless

Interjections

bravo / boo
hello / goodbye
holy cow / duh
phew / oops
thanks / no thanks
yes / no
yippee / oh my

Why are synonyms and antonyms important?

Knowing synonyms and antonyms can help you express yourself better – more CLEARLY.

If you know different words that describe the same thing (but in a slightly different way, or from a different angle), you can chose the best word (synonym) to use.

That way, you are able to deliver the exact message you intend to communicate.

Knowing synonyms and antonyms can help you express yourself better – with more VARIETY and more COLORFULLY. (Here "colorful" means "interesting or exciting.")

Repeating the same words tends to get monotonous. It doesn't sound good in natural speech, and even more so in artistic writing (poetry, prose). Using synonyms makes your speech or writing richer and more "colorful."

Using antonyms helps to emphasize your point, show contrast, or explain exactly what you mean. Antonyms too add "colors" to your speech or writing.

For example, compare these two paragraphs:

"The girl looked out the window. While looking out the window, the girl noticed a little kitty. The kitty she noticed was not fat. It was very much not fat."

"The girl looked out the window. While glancing outside, she noticed a little kitty. The kitten she saw was not fat. It was skinny, and not chubby at all."

In addition, You can really get full understanding of an area if you learn the different synonyms that apply to it, and their nuances.

For example, cost, charge, and fee, are all used to describe money that you pay for something:

Cost = the amount of money that you need to buy, make or do something. (How much is spent by the buyer.)

The total cost was $100.
You can get a new roof at the cost of $850.
They protest against the high cost of living.

Charge = an amount of money that is asked in return for goods or services. (How much is requested by the seller/provider.)

There is a monthly charge of $7 for using the phone.
There is an admission charge at the circus.
The shipment will be free of charge.

Fee = an amount of money that you have to pay for professional advice or services (the officially set price).

The college has a fee for the services that it provides.
These fees do not cover accommodation or meals.
My insurance covers the doctor's fee.

As you can see, cost, charge and fee have similar meanings, but there are slight differences present. They can be used slightly differently.

These words have different uses as verbs, too:

How much does it cost? (not: How much does it charge?)
How much do you charge for fixing the roof? (not: How much do you cost for fixing the roof?)

How to use synonyms and antonyms to improve vocabulary?

Synonyms and antonyms can help remember the words you are trying to learn.

For example, let's say you are trying to learn the word bash. "Bash" is an informal word which means "a large or exciting event, with food, drinks, dancing, etc." For example, "Get ready for the biggest birthday bash ever!"

Once you've understood the meaning of the word "bash," you'll find it helpful to know its synonym is "party."

(Note that it doesn't work the other way around. Trying to explain a "bash" by just saying it's a "party" is not very accurate.)

In many cases dictionaries list the word's synonyms after certain definitions or inside usage notes. There are also special dictionaries for synonyms. They are called thesauruses. A thesaurus is a book in which words with the same or similar meanings are grouped together.

There are also online thesauruses you can take advantage of:

Macmillan Dictionary and Thesaurus: Free English Dictionary Online

Merriam-Webster – Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus and More

Thesaurus.com

A word of caution: thesauruses also list many rare/not-so-much-in-use words. So use your judgment when working with them.

How to use synonyms and antonyms to improve writing skills?

Knowing many different synonyms and antonyms can help you diversify your writing.

The trick is knowing to choose the right word, and you can't pick the right word unless you actually know it. So you need to be familiar with many words, and know how and when to use each.

This is best achieved by reading, reading, reading, and then some more reading.

There are, however, writing exercises you can do to help.

An example for a writing exercise with synonyms

Let's say you would like to increase your active vocabulary of linking words that add information, such as "moreover."
(Active vocabulary is the words you know and actually use.)

So here is an exercise to help with that.

1. First, using a dictionary or thesaurus (or several of them), make a list of synonyms to the word "moreover."

Here is such a list:
Moreover, additionally, in addition, further, furthermore, likewise, besides, then, yet, what is more, too, also, as well, to boot.

2. Look up each word in the dictionary.

Make sure you understand the definitions.

Go over the example sentences. It's important to see how each word/phrase is actually used.

Also note the following points:

The possible locations of each word/phrase in the sentence (beginning, middle, end).
How punctuation is used next to it.
At which occasions each word/phrase is used: formal, informal, slang, etc.

3. Write several sentences with each synonym.

Here is an example to this:

Moreover (formal)

The solution offered was long and complicated. Moreover, it seemed ineffective at the time.
She is a beautiful woman and, moreover, a talented actress.

Additionally

The factory had to fire 20% of its workers. Additionally, the management had to reduce manufacturing costs by 40%.

In addition

There is, in addition, one more problem.
In addition to these files, I want you to look into those over there.
They won the race, and in addition made a new record.

Further

We had no pet. We realized, further, that we can't afford any.
He lost his ticket. Further, he didn't have his ID with him.
I would need further information on this.

Furthermore

She lied about her occupation. Furthermore, she lied about her true age.
The baby brought joy into their life. Taking care of him, furthermore, has made them stronger.

Likewise (formal)

The first week was very hard. The second week was likewise difficult.
The people wanted to stop the fighting. Likewise, the government needed to put an end to it.

Besides

We had many problems besides the mortgage.
Besides selling pastries, this bakery also offers a wide selection of drinks.

Then

I've been very tired lately and then there was the wedding to arrange.
Judy and Tracy want to come, and then there is Lisa and her boys, so we need another car.

Yet

You came late yet another time. I think we need to talk.
My boss fired yet another worker. That's the fourth one this month!

What is more

She lost the case, and what's more she tried to hide it!
The show was simply wonderful and what's more, he organized it herself.

Too (common in spoken English)

Can I see it too?
Clean your room, and you should open the windows, too.

Also (more formal than "as well" and "too")

Jim is a great singer. He also plays the piano.
I hated that movie. Also, it was too crowded inside.
There weren't a lot of students today. It was also very hot.

As well (in American English sounds formal)

Will he be there as well?
We make boots as well as belts.

To boot (humorous or old-fashioned)

She wore a red dress and red high heel shoes to boot.
Their son can't have grains, and he can't drink milk to boot.
That dish looks bad, and it tastes awful, to boot.

This ends our review of synonyms and antonyms in English.

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