# Words You Think Mean the Opposite **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 15, 2011, 1:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725 "2011-03-15T01:17:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/41 "2011-03-15T17:11:49Z")
Lately I’ve had the word “spurious” stuck in my head as the go-to word for “random bits and pieces”. The thing is that I _know_ what spurious means, but for some reason, just lately, I keep misusing it. For example, a report was due. It was supposed to be delivered to me last week. Instead of getting the full report, I got a few paragraphs on Monday, a few more scraps on Tuesday, a chunk on Wednesday, then revised versions of the Monday paragraphs came in again a few days later. I started emailing the guy: “Why are you sending me spurious bits of information?”… 😕 What??? That’s not what I want to say! Yet it somehow _feels_ right, like the word has the right flavor for what I mean. And I can’t think of the real word that I want either, but “spurious” isn’t it. :mad: Stupid word. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/42 "2011-03-15T18:08:39Z")
> [@Philster](#): > > Building get razed when they are torn down? But the Amish have barn raisings when they finish building a new barn? 🙂 Yeah, those homonym antonyms are a bitch. See also: “reckless driving” vs. “wreckless driving.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/43 "2011-03-15T18:13:21Z")
As I wrote in the other recent thread on this topic, to me the word “flurry” sounds like it should be a lot of snow. ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/44 "2011-03-15T18:15:00Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > “Sanction.” This is a word that can be considered its own opposite, since both noun and verb [apparently refer to giving approval or penalizing.](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sanction) I didn’t know from your one-word post whether you knew that or not. Perhaps some pedantic person will now tell me that either way it means a law or treaty touches on something. Nevertheless, I have found it interesting. * * * As long as we are also covering meaning/antonym vagueness in some examples in this thread, I submit _ **ravel** _. [It is apparently its own “antonym”](http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ravel) in that it is synonymous with _ **unravel** _. () I think that if we were to streamline English one of the other should go. Logically, the first “should” mean the opposite of the second, but there is no word in the same word “family” that is the opposite-- We would use _knit_ or _unite_ or somesuch word depending on the context. _ **- Word!** _ ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/45 "2011-03-15T18:20:11Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > I always thought **epitome** meant the most outstanding example of something but it means a perfectly average example of something. Not according to Merriam-Webster: [QUOTE=if you can’t figure out what I’m quoting here, you need to step away from the computer and get a coffee or something] **epitome** 1 a : a summary of a written work b : a brief presentation or statement of something _2 : a typical or ideal example : EMBODIMENT the British monarchy itself is the epitome of tradition — Richard Joseph_ 3 : brief or miniature form — usually used with in [/QUOTE] The italicized definition is closer to “outstanding example” than “perfectly average example,” I think. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/46 "2011-03-15T18:26:53Z")
I gather that the “raveling” of fibers originally meant their becoming tangled and twisted together in a disorganized way; to “unravel” was to separate them in an organized way. Apparently the idea of tangled fibers became confused with the idea of woven fibers (i.e., twisted together in an _organized_ way), so the useful meaning of the root word was lost. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/47 "2011-03-15T18:29:54Z")
I’m also stuck on the inflammable bandwagon. That just ain’t right. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/48 "2011-03-15T18:30:51Z")
Fuck you ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/49 "2011-03-15T18:33:56Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Actually no. The word inflam **m** able means flam **m** able. Thanks Lisa. ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/50 "2011-03-15T18:53:26Z")
> [@faithfool](#): > > I’m also stuck on the inflammable bandwagon. That just ain’t right. _Inflammable_ is actually older, dating from at least the seventeenth century, versus the nineteenth for _flammable_. The former comes from the Latin _inflammare_; the latter arises from mistaking the _in-_ for the negating prefix, when it is in fact more akin to, ah, _en-_. ---
**Author:** ![Sefton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Sefton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sefton)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/51 "2011-03-15T18:58:13Z")
I always thought **halcyon** should mean energetic or frenzied. But it means calm and happy. Hmph. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/52 "2011-03-15T18:58:18Z")
“Protagonist”. Something about the “Pro” start to the word makes me connect it to “protest” and “provoke” and words like that. It only makes sense to me when paired with “Antagonist”, which just sounds like “antagonize”, which is what an “antagonist” does. ---
**Author:** ![Randy\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee7513/32.png) [@Randy\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Randy_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/53 "2011-03-15T19:05:38Z")
I also had problems with “opaque” for a long time. “Federal/federalism/federalist” is another word that can be considered its own opposite. Lots of people have trouble with “proscribe.” It generally means “forbidden by rule,” but you see it when people mean to say “prescribe” and want to sound more formal. > [@spark240](#): > > Not a matter of opposites, but a similar misunderstanding exists for “epicenter.” > > It does not mean either _center_ or _origin_, and almost all usages that don’t involve earthquakes are mistaken. What would you say is the proper definition of “epicenter”? My dictionary says [quote] noun - the point on the earth’s surface vertically above the focus of an earthquake.[ul][li]figurative - the central point of something, typically a difficult or unpleasant situation : _the patient was at the epicenter of concern._[/ul][/li][/quote] ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/54 "2011-03-15T19:10:33Z")
Both protagonists and antagonists [agon](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/agon)-ize, or contend. The proto-agonist is the first-contender (think “first person”), the anti-agonist is the opposed-contender. “Antagonize” comes from “antagonist,” rather than the other way round. It would make more sense to just say “agonize” rather than “antagonize,” but that’s come to mean the pain one endures in the struggle, rather than the struggle itself. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/55 "2011-03-15T19:36:07Z")
> [@Randy\_Seltzer](#): > > What would you say is the proper definition of “epicenter”? My dictionary says I didn’t realize that usage had actually made it into dictionaries. (Curse you, descriptivists, draining meaning from my language!) The proper definition of “epicenter,” is firstly the technical one related to earthquakes. (The origin point of the quake, always some distance underground, is the “focus” or “hypocenter.”) I’d accept using it in non-earthquake contexts to mean the nearest reachable or visible point to a hidden central or origin point. Using it as just a generic synonym for “center” is wrong because it’s unnecessary fancifying (“epi-” adds no meaning), and because it subverts usages in which the prefix _is_ relevant. ---
**Author:** ![Angel\_of\_Doubt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7cd45c/32.png) [@Angel\_of\_Doubt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Angel_of_Doubt)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/56 "2011-03-15T19:43:38Z")
There’s always the most inappropriately-sonicky (thanks for the word, **purple cow**!), the slightly archaic one, “droll”. For a long time thought it meant dull and depressing. But Merriam-Webster online defines this word as “having a humorous, _whimsical_, or odd quality…” etc. italics mine- whimsical/droll droll/whimsical Nope, no matter which way you put it, it doesn’t seem to fly. The closest i can imagine “droll” to humorous is maybe a kind of dry sarcastic humor, but _whimsical_? ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/57 "2011-03-15T19:50:35Z")
I’m kind of ashamed to admit the amount I have picked up by reading thread. ---
**Author:** ![Bytegeist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9dc877/32.png) [@Bytegeist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bytegeist)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/58 "2011-03-15T20:56:03Z")
> [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](#): > > Lately I’ve had the word “spurious” stuck in my head as the go-to word for “random bits and pieces”. The thing is that I _know_ what spurious means, but for some reason, just lately, I keep misusing it. … > > And I can’t think of the real word that I want either, but “spurious” isn’t it. :mad: Stupid word. Maybe “superfluous”? As to my own confusions: as a kid I used to think “laud” and “laudable” and the like meant the opposite of what they do. Now, as a middle-aged person, I still have to pause and mentally smack myself into the correct interpretations whenever they show up. ---
**Author:** ![antonio107](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7ea924/32.png) [@antonio107](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antonio107)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/59 "2011-03-15T21:26:47Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > Here’s mine: My mind keeps wanting to give “bemused” a similar meaning to “amused.” Same. That’s what I was going to post. Also “dearth.” “Host” comes from the Latin “Hostes,” meaning an enemy. I wonder how many words have flipped in meaning across its etymology. ---
**Author:** ![Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@Swallowed\_My\_Cellphone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swallowed_My_Cellphone)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2011, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725/60 "2011-03-15T21:27:16Z")
> [@Bytegeist](#): > > Maybe “superfluous”?. Nah, I think I’m thinking more along the lines of “sporadic” but since he was giving me little tidbits and nothing substantial, I needed a word that sounded like it would suit the work produced by some little critter that shreds paper. And “spurious” has the right _sound_ to it. “The spurious hamster shredded the paper.” See? Doesn’t “spurious” sound like it really ought to be a word associated with some dimwitted, little fuzzball? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/words-you-think-mean-the-opposite/574725.md?page=4)