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Photo of a printed page with a dark gray background. Yellow heading: "What is a contronym?" Text: "Single words that have two contradictory meanings (they are their own opposites) are known as contronyms, and they are quite rare. Here are ten of them:" List: 1. apology: a statement of contrition for an action, or a defence of one. 2. bolt: to secure, or to flee. 3. bound: heading to a destination, or restrained…

Ten Contronyms: Words That Are Their Own Opposites

A list of ten contronyms, words like cleave, bolt and sanction that mean their own opposites. English class trivia for anyone who loved grammar quirks.

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Photo of a printed page with a dark gray background. Yellow heading: "What is a contronym?" Text: "Single words that have two contradictory meanings (they are their own opposites) are known as contronyms, and they are quite rare. Here are ten of them:" List: 1. apology: a statement of contrition for an action, or a defence of one. 2. bolt: to secure, or to flee. 3. bound: heading to a destination, or restrained…

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A 3x3 grid of punctuation marks, each with a label and four bullet traits. Semicolon: every english teacher's favorite student; doesn't start things until the last minute; has hidden wild side of some kind; probably a cat person. M-dash: must have final zinger in an argument; kind of an asshole, but in the loveable way; off-the-charts sarcasm levels; cheer them up with food. Ampersand: really heckin gay; probably… Top text reads: "Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light." Below is a photo of a white sign on a dark green door that reads: "REFUSE TO BE STORED IN BLACK PLASTIC SACKS AND PLACED IN THE CONTAINERS PROVIDED". Close-up of a worksheet. Printed text: "C. Write these words in alphabetical order." Listed words: "1. take", "value", "use", "2. royal". A child's messy handwriting on the lines reads "aekt", "aeluv", "esu", and "alory", each spelling out the letters of the word. A black-on-white typed poem titled "How to Avoid Mixing Your Metaphors". It reads: "It's not rocket surgery. First, get all your ducks on the same page. After all, you can't make an omelette without breaking stride. Be sure to watch what you write with a fine-tuned comb. Check and re-check until the cows turn blue. It's as easy as falling off a piece of cake. Don't worry about opening up a whole hill of beans: you… Black text on a off-white textured background: "What's the difference between a kleptomaniac and a literalist? The literalist takes things literally. The kleptomaniac takes things, literally." Screenshot of a Tumblr thread. User marcvscicero writes: "writing style: author from the 1800s with a severe love of commas whose sentences last half a page". User fencer-x replies: "I came out here, to this point, to this place, hoping against all hope and despite signs and portends suggesting otherwise that I might, somehow, find myself having a pleasant experience, and yet here I stand, alone against the world,…

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