Choose the best antonym of the example from the choices provided.
1. DOTE :
- AVERSION
- ANTIDOTE
- FOOLISH
- CREATIVITY
- DARING
2. IMBROGLIO :
- FIGHT
- CONCLUSION
- TRUST
- THANKFULNESS
- HARMONY
3. REMINISCE :
- ORIGINATE
- IGNORE
- CREATE
- RECONVENE
- CREDIT
4. EXPEDITE :
- DISPATCH
- DAWDLE
- PRECIPITATE
- OVERLOOK
- CREED
5. ONUS :
- EASEMENT
- CAPABILITY
- OBLIGATION
- TRACTION
- BELIEF
6. SQUALOR :
- IMPURITY
- WEALTH
- CONSUMPTION
- FECES
- INDIGENCE
7. RETICENT :
- TIRED
- FORWARD
- SHY
- DRAINED
- ELEGANT
8. NEXUS :
- SEPARATION
- CONNECTION
- RESPECT
- VINCULUM
- DISTRACTION
9. NOISOME :
- FETID
- RANK
- SALUBRIOUS
- PACIFIC
- PESTILENT
Answers and Explanations
1. A: To dote on someone is to love him/her. An aversion is a dislike of someone/something, the best antonym. An antidote (B) is a counteracting remedy, as against poison. Foolish (C) means silly, not loving. (Do not confuse “doting”/loving with “dotage”/senility.) Creativity (D) is imagination, artistry, originality, ingenuity, etc. Daring (E) is boldness.
2. E: An imbroglio is a quarrel, often a complicated/entangled one. Harmony is the best antonym. Fight (A) is a synonym. Conclusion (B) is an end or a decision. Trust (C) is belief that someone is honest or dependable, or that something is true. Thankfulness (D) is gratitude.
3. B: To reminisce is to remember and/or relate or discuss memories. Its opposite is to forget. Ignore is the closest antonym here. To originate (A) is to begin. To create (C) is to make/produce. To reconvene (D) is to meet again, as a committee or group. To credit (D) is to attribute or ascribe something (to a person or thing).
4. B: To expedite is to get something done promptly. To dawdle, i.e. delay or waste time, is the best antonym. Dispatch (A) is to hurry or send speedily, a synonym for expedite. Precipitate (C) means to trigger, hurry, or speed and is another synonym. Overlook (D) means to miss or disregard. Creed (E) is a noun meaning belief, faith, or religion.
5. A: Onus means burden. Easement can mean relief or support and is thus the best antonym. (Easement also means legal access/right of way, as with land.) Capability (B) means competence. Obligation (C) means duty or responsibility and is a synonym for onus. Traction (D) means friction or resistance. Belief (E) means regarding as true, acceptance, faith, or conviction.
6. B: Squalor means poverty, filth, or wretchedness. Wealth, the opposite of poverty, is the best antonym. Impurity (A) is a near synonym. Consumption (C) can mean eating, use, or decay; decay is a synonym of squalor. Feces (D) are excrement, more related than opposite to squalor. Indigence (E) means poverty, another synonym.
7. B: Reticent means uncommunicative, quiet, or shy. Forward means outgoing or aggressive and is the best antonym. Tired is worn out or fatigued. Shy is a synonym of reticent. Drained means exhausted, depleted, or empty. Elegant means tastefully beautiful, graceful, fancy, refined, ingenious, or ingeniously simple.
8. A: Nexus means a connection or center. Separation is the best antonym. Connection (B) is a synonym. Respect (C) means others’ admiration. Vinculum (D) means a bond or connection and is also a synonym for nexus. Distraction (E) means a state of having one’s attention diverted, or a diversion or amusement.
9. C: Noisome means noxious, harmful, unhealthy, or offensive. Salubrious means beneficial, helpful, healthy, or wholesome and is the best antonym. Fetid (A) means rotten, rancid, foul, noxious, or offensive and is a synonym. Rank (B) is also a synonym for noisome or fetid. Pacific (D) means peaceful or appeasing and is not an exact antonym. Pestilent (E) means dangerous, harmful, or noxious-another synonym for noisome.
by Enoch Morrison | Last Updated: January 17, 2019