The Semantics of Words (1)

Antonymy
the relationship of being
"opposite in meaning"
TYPES OF ANTONYMS
 HOW MANY TYPES OF
ANTONYMS ARE THERE ?
 There are four basic types of
opposites:
1. Binary Opposites
2. (Gradable) Antonyms / Opposites
3. Converses / Converse Terms
4. Incompatible Sets / Multiple Incompatibles
Binary Opposites
 Pairs of antonyms in the case of
which the truth of one word in the
pair implies the falsity of the other
and similarly the falsity of one
implies the truth of the other
 If the one of the pairs is
applicable, then the other
cannot be, and vice versa.
They express an either/or
relationship.
Example: true and false are binary
antonyms
If a sentence is true, it cannot be
false. If it is false, it cannot be true.
 Binary antonyms have two
important features:
1.They are not gradable. A person is either
single or married, dead or alive. In certain
limited contexts , these ungradable words
are used as words for gradable qualities, as
in: He is more alive to the dangers of the
situation than his wife.
In such cases, what is graded is only
the secondary implication or one of
the generally accepted connotations
of the word.
The word (alive) means (conscious)
or (aware), and what is being graded
is the secondary meaning, not the
primary meaning
 2. Binary antonyms are exhaustive
and mutually exclusive
They are exhaustive in the sense that
the words in these pairs cannot both
be false
We cannot normally say that Ali is
neither single nor married.
They are mutually exclusive in the
sense that the words in these pairs
cannot both be true.
We cannot say that Ali is both single
and married.
 Other terms for binary
opposites are:
CONTRADICTORY TERMS
COMPLIMENTARY TERMS
(Gradable) Antonyms / Opposites:
Pairs of antonyms in the case of which the truth
of one word in the pair implies the falsity of the
other but the falsity of one does not necessarily
imply the truth of the other
Expressions are gradable antonyms if they are
at opposite ends of a continuous scale of values.
 Thus, with gradable
antonyms it is possible to
be both "not X" and
"not Y", but somewhere
in the middle.
 beautiful – pretty –
good-looking – plain –
ugly
 Converses / Converse Terms:
Pairs of antonyms in the case of
which the existence of one word
in the pair inevitably implies the
existence of the other. They are
also called relational opposites
The addition of the comparative
suffix (-er) and the use of (more)
changes gradable adjectives into
converse terms
GRADABLE ANTONYMS
GOOD – BAD
TALL – SHORT
RICH – POOR
HOT – COLD
 CONVERSE TERMS
BETTER THAN – WORSE THAN
TALLER THAN – SHORTER
THAN
RICHER THAN – POORER THAN
HOTTER THAN – COLDER
THAN
 4. Multiple Incompatibles:
a large number of antonyms
are terms taken from systems
of multiple incompatibility
 Multiple Incompatibles are rather
problematic for two reasons:
1. The quantum of opposition is not as
strong as it is in the case of the other
types of antonyms. For this reason,
many linguists do not consider such
opposites to be antonyms at all.
•2. These antonyms do have a
characteristic in common with
gradabla opposites. In both types,
the truth of one leads to the falsity of
the other but the falsity of one does
not necessarily lead to the truth of
the other.
If a substance is in the form of solid,
it means that it is not in the form of
liquid. But if it is not in the form of
solid, it does not necessarily mean
that it is in the form of liquid,
because it could be in the form of
gas
 antonyms as well. If
something is hot, it necessarily
means that it is not cold. But if
it is not hot, it does not
necessarily mean that it is
cold; it may be just warm,
tepid, or cool.
 In traditional logic, both
gradable antonyms and
multiple incompatibles are
discussed under the same
heading of contrary terms
"You forget what you
want to remember and
you remember what
you want to forget."
"You always pass failure
on the way to success."
 "Some have been thought to be brave
because they were afraid to run away."
 "Winning may not be
everything, but losing has
little to recommend it.”
 that my inner and outer life
are based on the labors of
other men, living and dead,
and that I must exert myself in
order to give in the same
measure as I have received
and am still receiving."
If speaking is silver, then
listening is gold."