# Words that are their own antonym **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 8, 2024, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402 "2024-08-08T02:14:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2024, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/41 "2024-08-15T12:15:14Z")
“Bad, bad, bad” . Almost everywhere in the world, it means “bad”. But here at the Dope, it means: “start smiling!..she’s posting again!” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/42 "2024-08-16T02:08:35Z")
Another one today. Was watching a bit of a preseason football game, and one of the announcers mentioned running **vertical** (meaning lengthwise down the field) as opposed to lateral (side-to-side). That’s not the definition of ‘vertical’ that I remember. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/43 "2024-08-16T02:27:14Z")
> [@Hatchie](#): > > Justice. If you carry a sign that says “Justice for OJ”, does it mean you support him or think he got off unfairly? Cf. Monty Python’s “Appeal for Sanity”: > You know, there are many people in the country today who, through no fault of their own, are sane. Some of them were born sane. Some of them became sane later in their lives. It is up to people like you and me who are out of our tiny little minds to try and help these people overcome their sanity. You can start in small ways with ping-pong ball eyes and a funny voice… ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/44 "2024-08-16T17:06:26Z")
In Canada we have employment insurance. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/45 "2024-08-16T17:18:36Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Was watching a bit of a preseason football game, and one of the announcers mentioned running **vertical** (meaning lengthwise down the field) as opposed to lateral (side-to-side). That’s not the definition of ‘vertical’ that I remember. “Lengthwise” would have been clearer, as well as being one syllable shorter than “vertical.” (Number-of-syllables being a frequent cause of meaning shifts, when humans choose a shorter word even if the meaning is ‘off.’) The announcer was falling prey to that too-common propensity to choose the word that seems Cooler, in place of the word that conveys meaning without ambiguity. > [@wolfpup](#): > > I looked this up when I became pissed off with John McWhorter citing all sorts of alleged contronyms that really weren’t, in support of bullshit like “I could care less”. McWhorter just loves being controversial. A defense of “I could care less” certainly provides him with plenty of angry responses… ---
**Author:** ![Gordon\_G](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3da27b/32.png) [@Gordon\_G](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gordon_G)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/46 "2024-08-16T17:24:24Z")
I nominate “can” and “can’t.” Yes, they’re spelled differently but don’t linguists still focus on the spoken language? My ears (and brain) can’t distinguish the two words as spoken by many or most Americans. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/47 "2024-08-16T17:27:42Z")
For me, unless I’m stressing “can,” I use slightly different vowels, at least in casual speech. So, something closer to “I ken do it” or “I c’n do it” vs “I can’t do it” with an /ae/ sound. I would not say something like “I kent/k’nt” do it. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2024, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/48 "2024-08-16T17:56:47Z")
> [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > … > > But as @Pardel-Lux mentioned, my misconception wasn’t totally false because in other contexts, “Untiefe” really means unfathomable depth. There is actually a whole class of words in German that can be misunderstood that way, because the prefix _un-_ can be - negatory, as in _unvernünftig_ (unreasonable) - augmentative, as in _eine Unsumme Geld_ (a huge sum of money, not a non-sum of money) Hence _Untiefe_ with a negatory _un-_ means non-deep, but with an augmentative un- means very-deep ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2024, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402/49 "2024-08-22T17:58:55Z")
Authentic ancient rusty sword or just a carbon kopis? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-that-are-their-own-antonym/1005402.md?page=2)