Opposite words: 70 antonyms for kids
What antonyms are, how they differ from synonyms, antonyms made with prefixes and a list of 70 opposite word pairs for kids and learners.
By Polarzinho ·
I am the opposite of skinny, of rushed and of anyone who shares bamboo. In other words, I am a great example of antonyms.
Antonyms are words with opposite meanings. Here is what they are, how they are formed and a list of 70 pairs sorted by type.
What are antonyms?
Antonyms are words with opposite meanings: hot and cold, up and down, day and night. Synonyms are words with similar meanings: happy and glad.
Opposite adjectives
- tall ↔ short
- big ↔ small
- fast ↔ slow
- hot ↔ cold
- light ↔ dark
- strong ↔ weak
- new ↔ old
- full ↔ empty
- clean ↔ dirty
- rich ↔ poor
- happy ↔ sad
- easy ↔ hard
- sweet ↔ sour
- wide ↔ narrow
- wet ↔ dry
- heavy ↔ light
- loud ↔ quiet
- expensive ↔ cheap
- open ↔ closed
- young ↔ old
Opposite verbs
- open ↔ close
- enter ↔ exit
- go up ↔ go down
- win ↔ lose
- buy ↔ sell
- arrive ↔ leave
- turn on ↔ turn off
- remember ↔ forget
- laugh ↔ cry
- start ↔ finish
- pull ↔ push
- give ↔ take
- wake up ↔ fall asleep
- accept ↔ refuse
- love ↔ hate
Opposite nouns
- day ↔ night
- love ↔ hate
- war ↔ peace
- beginning ↔ end
- truth ↔ lie
- entrance ↔ exit
- joy ↔ sorrow
- courage ↔ fear
- question ↔ answer
- success ↔ failure
- friend ↔ enemy
- light ↔ shadow
- victory ↔ defeat
- summer ↔ winter
- order ↔ chaos
Opposite adverbs and other words
- early ↔ late
- always ↔ never
- near ↔ far
- inside ↔ outside
- before ↔ after
- more ↔ less
- above ↔ below
- here ↔ there
- up ↔ down
- well ↔ badly
Antonyms made with prefixes
Many antonyms are formed by adding a prefix like un-, in-, im-, il-, ir- or dis-.
- happy ↔ unhappy
- possible ↔ impossible
- legal ↔ illegal
- honest ↔ dishonest
- visible ↔ invisible
- polite ↔ impolite
- kind ↔ unkind
- regular ↔ irregular
- responsible ↔ irresponsible
- appear ↔ disappear
Practice by playing
In Letter River, you read a clue and drag across the letters on the board to spell the answer. Many clues ask for exactly the opposite of a word.
PolarzinhoThe otter in Letter River is calm. Her antonym is me right before lunch.
And in Stop!, the quick category game, invent an "opposite of" category and see who thinks fastest.
PolarzinhoFor "opposite of skinny", I write my own name. I win every time.
FAQ
What is the difference between synonyms and antonyms?
Synonyms have similar meanings (big and large). Antonyms have opposite meanings (big and small).
What is the antonym of happy?
Sad or unhappy.
Are all antonyms made with prefixes?
No. Some use prefixes (happy, unhappy), but most are different words (tall, short).
Your turn
Write the opposite of: generous, begin, visible and noisy. Then check the list.