| / English Dictionary |
OPPOSITE
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
A word that expresses a meaning opposed to the meaning of another word, in which case the two words are antonyms of each other
Example:
to him the antonym of 'gay' was 'depressed'
Synonyms:
antonym; opposite; opposite word
Classified under:
Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents
Hypernyms ("opposite" is a kind of...):
word (a unit of language that native speakers can identify)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "opposite"):
direct antonym (antonyms that are commonly associated (e.g., 'wet' and 'dry'))
indirect antonym (antonyms whose opposition is mediated (e.g., the antonymy of 'wet' and 'parched' is mediated by the similarity of 'parched' to 'dry'))
Sense 2
Meaning:
A contestant that you are matched against
Synonyms:
opponent; opposite; opposition
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("opposite" is a kind of...):
contestant (a person who participates in competitions)
Sense 3
Meaning:
A relation of direct opposition
Example:
we thought Sue was older than Bill but just the reverse was true
Synonyms:
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("opposite" is a kind of...):
oppositeness; opposition (the relation between opposed entities)
Sense 4
Meaning:
Something inverted in sequence or character or effect
Example:
when the direct approach failed he tried the inverse
Synonyms:
inverse; opposite
Classified under:
Nouns denoting relations between people or things or ideas
Hypernyms ("opposite" is a kind of...):
oppositeness; opposition (the relation between opposed entities)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "opposite"):
additive inverse ((mathematics) one of a pair of numbers whose sum is zero; the additive inverse of -5 is +5)
multiplicative inverse; reciprocal ((mathematics) one of a pair of numbers whose product is 1: the reciprocal of 2/3 is 3/2; the multiplicative inverse of 7 is 1/7)
II. (adjective)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Of leaves etc; growing in pairs on either side of a stem
Example:
opposite leaves
Synonyms:
opposite; paired
Classified under:
Domain category:
botany; phytology (the branch of biology that studies plants)
Antonym:
alternate (of leaves and branches etc; first on one side and then on the other in two ranks along an axis; not paired)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Characterized by opposite extremes; completely opposed
Example:
extreme and indefensible polar positions
Synonyms:
diametric; diametrical; opposite; polar
Classified under:
Similar:
different (unlike in nature or quality or form or degree)
Derivation:
oppositeness (the relation between opposed entities)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Altogether different in nature or quality or significance
Example:
it is said that opposite characters make a union happiest
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
different (unlike in nature or quality or form or degree)
Derivation:
oppositeness (the relation between opposed entities)
Sense 4
Meaning:
The other one of a complementary pair
Example:
the two chess kings are set up on squares of opposite colors
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
other (not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied)
Sense 5
Meaning:
Being directly across from each other; facing
Example:
at opposite poles
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
other (not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied)
Sense 6
Meaning:
Moving or facing away from each other
Example:
they went in opposite directions
Classified under:
Adjectives
Similar:
other (not the same one or ones already mentioned or implied)
III. (adverb)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Directly facing each other
Example:
they sat opposite at the table
Synonyms:
face-to-face; face to face; opposite
Classified under:
Context examples:
You have hosted Saturn all this time in the hardest place to host Saturn: 180 degrees opposite your Sun.
(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)
The R-groups (side chains) of neighbouring residues in a b-strand point in opposite directions; beta sheets can be parallel, anti-parallel or mixed.
(Beta Sheet, NCI Thesaurus)
A beta strand is an extended polypeptide chain with the sidechains pointing away from the backbone and oriented on opposite sides of the backbone from one residue to another.
(Beta Strand, NCI Thesaurus)
He was quite alone, and on the table opposite him was what I knew at once from the description to be a phonograph.
(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)
Steerforth's place was at the bottom of the school, at the opposite end of the long room.
(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)
Scientists temporarily have no other resource providing views of the sun from the opposite side of the solar system from Earth.
(Curiosity Mars Rover Tracks Sunspots, NASA)
Elizabeth, at work in the opposite corner, saw it all with great delight.
(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)
But researchers were surprised to find the opposite to be true.
(‘Messy’ production of perovskite material increases solar cell efficiency, University of Cambridge)
Cross-ventilation occurs in rooms that have windows on opposite sides of a room.
(Wind more effective than cold air at cooling rooms naturally, University of Cambridge)
A new study reveals that saying sorry when making a social rejection can have the opposite effect of its intention.
(Sometimes You Shouldn't Say Sorry, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)
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