[etni] Autoantonyms


Autoantonyms


If you have read our  <http://www.fun-with-words.com/nym_antonyms.html>
antonyms page, you will know that two words with opposite meanings are
called antonyms. So autoantonyms are words that are the opposite of
themselves! 

Auto-antonym has Greek roots meaning a word that is the opposite of itself.
They have variously been called contranyms, contronyms, antilogies, Janus
words (after the two-faced Greek mythical figure, from which "January" also
derives), and enantiodromes. 

Below is a list af many such words, and their associated opposite (or
near-opposite) meanings. See the bottom of the page for an explanation of
<http://www.fun-with-words.com/nym_autoantonyms.html#Autoantonym_Dust#Autoan
tonym_Dust> how such contradictory meanings can come about. 


 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


The Origin of Autoantonyms


Bob Fradkin explains how one of the major classes of auto-antonym comes
about: 

Dust is part of a series of noun-verb conversions related to coverings of
things. If the noun gives a covering that is natural to the thing, then the
verb means remove the covering. If the covering is imposed, the verb means
put the covering on. 

So you get shell an egg, peel a banana, but paint the furniture, wax the
floor. 

Dust is interesting because it can go either way: dust the furniture (a sort
of natural covering to be removed) vs. dust the crops (put stuff on them
that they didn't have and wouldn't unless humans put it there). I mentioned
this in my English grammar book Stalking the Wild Verb Phrase. 

Related page:  <http://www.fun-with-words.com/nym_antonyms.html> What is an
antonym? 

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