Find antonyms in context

Key Notes :

What are Antonyms?

Antonyms are words that have opposite meanings. Think of them as word opposites! For example:

• Accept is the antonym of reject.
• Kind is the antonym of cruel.
• Float is the antonym of sink.

Antonyms help us understand the different shades of meaning in language. They can make our writing more interesting and descriptive!

Antonyms in Sentences

Sometimes, you can figure out the meaning of a word by looking at its antonym in a sentence. The context of the sentence gives you clues!

Strategies for Finding Antonyms in Context:

• Look for Signal Words:
  Words like “but,” “however,” “unlike,” or “instead” often signal a contrast, which can help you spot antonyms.
• Pay Attention to Descriptions:
  If a sentence describes something and then describes its opposite, the words used are likely antonyms.
• Use Your Prior Knowledge:
  Think about what you already know about the topic or the words.

Let’s look at some examples:

The sun was hot, but the lemonade was cold.

• Here, hot and cold are used together to show they are opposites.

The cat was awake, while the dog was asleep.

• Awake and asleep describe opposite states of being.

The road was smooth, unlike the rough path we took yesterday.

• Smooth and rough are opposites describing the texture of the road.

Time to Practice!

Read each sentence carefully. Can you find the antonyms? Write them down!

1. The elephant is huge, but the mouse is tiny.
2. The movie was funny, not serious.
3. It is easy to open, but very hard to close.
4. The top shelf is high, the bottom shelf is low.
5. The answer was right, not wrong.

Check Your Answers!

Here are the answers to the practice questions:

1. huge – tiny
2. funny – serious
3. easy – hard
4. high – low
5. right – wrong

Great job! Keep practicing to become an antonym expert!

Summary

In these notes, we learned that antonyms are words with opposite meanings. We looked at examples of antonyms and practiced finding them in sentences. Remembering to look at context is key to identifying antonyms.

Let’s practice!