Part 2. VERBAL ABILITY: TACTICS, REVIEW, AND PRACTICE

Chapter 4. Antonym Questions

These are the antonym directions you will find on the GRE: “Each question below consists of a word printed in capital letters, followed by five lettered words or phrases. Choose the lettered word or phrase that is most nearly opposite in meaning to the word in capital letters.”

Your task in answering antonym questions is straightforward: You are given a word and must choose, from the five choices that follow it, the best antonym (opposite). Often the first question or two on your verbal section will be an antonym question. Remember, the earliest questions you face on the GRE weigh more heavily than the final ones you answer. Take the time you need to answer these early questions correctly.

Testing Tactics

 Think of a Context for the Capitalized Word

Take a quick look at the word in capital letters. If you don’t recollect its meaning right away, try to think of a phrase or sentence in which you have heard it used. The context may help you come up with the word’s meaning. For example:

MAGNIFY:
(A) forgive
(B) comprehend
(C) extract
(D) diminish
(E) electrify

The term “magnifying glass” should immediately come to mind. A magnifying glass enlarges things. The opposite of enlarging something is to make it smaller or diminish it. The answer is Choice D.

Now apply this tactic to a slightly more difficult question.

ABERRANT:
(A) exact
(B) simple
(C) causative
(D) ordinary
(E) pleasant

What phrase comes to your mind? “Aberrant behavior.” “Aberrant data.” In both cases you should have an impression of something deviating from what is expected, an impression of something unusual or abnormal. Aberrant behavior is odd or extraordinary; aberrant, therefore, is an antonym for ordinary. The correct answer is Choice D.

 Before You Look at the Choices, Think of Antonyms for the Capitalized Word

Suppose your word is industrious, hard-working. What opposites come to your mind? You might come up with lazy, idle, slothful, inactive — all words that mean lacking industry and energy.

Now look at the choices:

INDUSTRIOUS:
(A) stupid
(B) harsh
(C) indolent
(D) complex
(E) inexpensive

Lazy, idle, and slothful all are synonyms for indolent. Your correct answer is Choice C.

This tactic will help you even when you have to deal with unfamiliar words among your answer choices. Suppose you do not know the meaning of the word indolent. You know that one antonym for your key word industrious is lazy. Therefore, you know that you are looking for a word that means the same as lazy. At this point you can go through the answer choices eliminating answers that don’t work. Does stupid mean the same as lazy? No, smart people can be lazy, too. Does harsh mean the same as lazy? No, harsh means cruel or rough. Does indolent mean the same as lazy? You don’t know; you should check the other choices and then come back. Does complex mean the same as lazy? No, complex means complicated or intricate. Does inexpensive mean the same as lazy? No. So what is left? Indolent. Once again, your correct answer is Choice C.

See how you do when you apply this tactic to a new question.

TACITURNITY:
(A) arrogance
(B) intolerance
(C) belligerence
(D) inconstancy
(E) loquacity

Taciturnity is the quality of being uncommunicative. In thinking of possible antonyms for taciturnity, you may have come up with words like talkativeness, wordiness, and garrulity, words signifying excessiveness of speech. Talkativeness, wordiness, and garrulity are all synonyms for loquacity. The correct answer is Choice E.

 Read All the Choices Before You Decide Which Is Best

On the GRE you are working under time pressure. You may be tempted to mark down the first answer that feels right and ignore the other choices given. Don’t do it. Consider each answer. Only in this way can you be sure to distinguish between two possible answers and come up with the best answer for the question.

Words have shades of meaning. In matching a word with its opposite, you must pay attention to these shades of meaning. Try this example to see how this tactic works.

UNRULY:
(A) immobile
(B) engaging
(C) merciful
(D) tractable
(E) indifferent

Suppose you have only a vague sense of the meaning of unruly. You associate it with such vaguely negative terms as wild, disagreeable, bad. For this reason, you stop short when you come to Choice C. Reasoning that someone wild and disagreeable is not compassionate or merciful, you look no further and mark down Choice C.

Choice C, however, is incorrect. True, an unruly person is wild and hard to manage, even rebellious. Someone who lacks rebelliousness, however, is not necessarily merciful. Such a person is easy to manage, compliant, in fact tractable. The correct answer is Choice D.

Now try a second example to practice this tactic.

BANALITY:
(A) detailed analysis
(B) unrehearsed statement
(C) succinct account
(D) novel expression
(E) faithful description

A banality lacks freshness and originality; something banal is timeworn and trite. Choice B has an immediate appeal: something unrehearsed is by definition spontaneous and at least should seem fresh. However, an unrehearsed statement could be filled with cliches; though spontaneous, it may well be banal or trite. The best antonym for banality is Choice D, novel expression.

 Look at the Answer Choices to Determine the Word’s Part of Speech

Look at the capitalized word. What part of speech is it? Words often exist in several forms. You may think of run as a verb, for example, but in the phrases, “a run in her stocking,” and “hit a home run,” run is a noun.

The GRE plays on this confusion in testing your verbal ability. When you look at a particular capitalized word, you may not know whether you are dealing with a noun, a verb, or an adjective. Harbor, for example, is a very common noun; in “to harbor a fugitive,” to give refuge to a runaway, it is a much less common verb.

If you suspect that a capitalized word may have more than one part of speech, don’t worry. Just look at the first couple of answer choices and see what part of speech they are. That part of speech will be the capitalized word’s part of speech.

In GRE Antonym Questions, all the answer choices have the same part of speech. You can always tell what that part of speech is by a quick glance at the first answer choice or two.

See how this tactic works in answering a relatively simple question.

POLISH:
(A) ruthlessness
(B) honesty
(C) indolence
(D) gaucheness
(E) complexity

Are you dealing with polish the verb or polish the noun?

A quick look at the answers assures you that they are all nouns. Polish here has nothing to do with rubbing and shining your silverware. The noun polish means refinement and culture: The country squire went abroad to acquire polish. Its opposite is gaucheness or awkwardness. The correct answer is Choice D.

Now try a second example.

PRECIPITATE:
(A) candid
(B) erratic
(C) cautious
(D) generous
(E) shallow

Is the word in capitals the adjective precipitate (hasty, impetuous) or the verb precipitate (to expedite or trigger)?

A quick look at the answer choices reveals that it is an adjective. (The -ic and -ous word endings are common adjective endings.) Thus, its opposite is cautious or deliberate, Choice C.

 Consider Secondary Meanings of the Capitalized Word as Well as Its Primary Meaning

If none of the answer choices seems right to you, take another look at the capitalized word. It may have more than one meaning. The GRE often constructs questions that make use of secondary, less well-known meanings of deceptively familiar words. Take, for example, this typical question.

LIST:
(A) overturn
(B) be upright
(C) lie flat
(D) fall forward
(E) veer from side to side

List here has nothing to do with making lists or enumerating. It has to do with moving. When it lists to starboard, a ship simply leans to one side or tilts. The best antonym for this meaning of list is Choice B, be upright.

Try a second, more difficult question involving a less familiar meaning of a familiar word.

IMPRECISE:
(A) direct
(B) resolute
(C) voluminous
(D) nice
(E) perceptible

Few examinees tested on this question would answer it correctly. Why?

The problem lies not in the capitalized word but in the answer choices. Imprecise means inexact, approximate, vague. Thus, its antonym means exact and precise. Not immediately spotting exact or precise among the answer choices, and looking for a positive term to contrast with imprecise, some examinees may settle for Choice A, direct. In doing so, they fail to consider that words have secondary meanings. In this case, nice does not mean pleasant or agreeable, as in enjoying nice weather or being nice to your baby brother. Instead, it means requiring or marked by great accuracy, delicacy, and skill, as in making a nice distinction in an argument or hitting a nice shot in golf. The correct answer is Choice D.

 Break Down Unfamiliar Words into Recognizable Parts

When you come upon a totally unfamiliar word, don’t give up. Break it down and see if you recognize any of its parts. Pay particular attention to prefixes — word parts added to the beginning of a word — and to roots, the building blocks of the language.

Look once more at the following question.

ABERRANT:
(A) exact
(B) simple
(C) causative
(D) ordinary
(E) pleasant

Suppose you had never seen aberrant before. You have seen dozens of other words beginning with ab-: absent, abnormal, abduct. Take abduct. What do you do when you abduct someone? You kidnap him, or steal him away. Ab- means away.

What about the root, err? To err is to be wrong or to wander, as in wandering from the usual path. Thus, aberrant means wandering away, straying from what is usual or normal, and its opposite is of course Choice D, ordinary.

Now try a second example in which this tactic can prove helpful.

NEOLOGISM:
(A) cordial salutation
(B) brief summary
(C) lengthy diatribe
(D) archaic expression
(E) equivocal remark

Neo- means new. Log- means word or speech. A neologism must have to do with a new sort of word or speech. Logically, therefore, the opposite of neologism must have to do with an old sort of word or speech. Only one answer seems possible: Choice D, archaic expression. Archaic means antiquated or obsolete. Choice D is correct.

Here is a final example, with word parts coming from Greek.

SYNCHRONOUS:
(A) not in working order
(B) without problems
(C) out of position
(D) not in phase
(E) without permission

Syn- means together. Chron- means time. Something synchronous must have to do with occurring together in time, like the synchronous movements of swimmers keeping time with one another. The antonym for synchronous thus is Choice D, not in phase.

The word part approach can help you interpret new words you encounter. However, apply it cautiously. In many words the roots, prefixes, and suffixes have lost their original meanings. In others, the same root occurs, but with markedly differing effects. It would not do to call a philanthropist a philanderer, for instance, though both words contain the root for love.

If you find the word part approach appealing, try to spend some time working with the Basic Word Parts List in Chapter 8. Remember, however, there is no substitute for learning the exact meaning of a word as it is used today.

 Change Unfamiliar Words from One Part of Speech to Another

Sometimes you may be stumped by a word in one form, yet recognize it easily in another. Take, for example, the word synchronous in the previous tactic. To most test-takers, the adjective synchronous is far less familiar than is the verb synchronize, as in “Synchronize your watches!”

When you confront an unfamiliar word, try replacing its suffix with a different word ending and see whether this change jogs your memory. In the case of the noun assiduity, for example, cut off the noun suffix -ity and replace it with the adjective suffix -ous. You now have the word assiduous, as in an assiduous worker. Does that ring a bell? Assiduous means hardworking; assiduity, therefore, is a synonym for industriousness or diligence.

Practice this tactic as you answer the following question:

DICHOTOMOUS:
(A) apparent
(B) undivided
(C) atypical
(D) indifferent
(E) abstract

Remove the -ous ending from dichotomous. In its place, substitute -y. You have the word dichotomy, as in the dichotomy between Good and Evil, or the dichotomy between thought and action. A dichotomy is a division or separation in two parts, often mutually exclusive ones. Something dichotomous, therefore, is divided; its opposite is undivided, Choice B.

 In Eliminating Answer Choices, Test Words for Their Positive or Negative Connotations

When you are dealing with a partially unfamiliar word, a word that you cannot define or use in a sentence but that you know you have seen previously, try to remember in what sort of context you have seen that word. Did it have positive connotations, or did it have a negative feel? If you are certain the capitalized word has positive connotations, then, since you are looking for its antonym, you know the correct answer must have negative ones. Thus, you can eliminate any answer choices that have positive connotations and guess among the answer choices that are negative in tone.

See how this approach applies in the following example.

CHARY:
(A) bold
(B) bright
(C) unsteady
(D) unforgiving
(E) unhappy

You cannot define chary. You would hesitate to use it in a sentence of your own. And yet, you are sure the word has a slightly negative feel to it. A person is chary about something. You have a sense of someone holding back.

Look at the answer choices. Which of them have negative connotations? Unsteady? Unforgiving? Unhappy? Eliminate all three. You have narrowed down your choices to bold and bright, both words that have a positive feel. You are in an excellent position to guess. As it turns out, chary means hesitant or reluctant to proceed. Its opposite is Choice A, bold.

 Watch Out for Errors Caused by Eye-Catchers

When you look at answer choices, do you find that certain ones seem to leap right off the page? These words are eye-catchers. They look good — but be sure to take a second look.

Try these next antonym questions to see just how an eye-catcher works. First, an easy one.

UNDERMINE:
(A) ensnare
(B) overstrain
(C) mollify
(D) terminate
(E) bolster

What’s the opposite of under? Over. What’s the opposite of undermine? No, it’s not overstrain. Be suspicious of answers that come too easily. To undermine means to weaken something or cause it to collapse by removing its underlying supports. The opposite of to undermine is Choice E, to bolster or support.

Here’s a more difficult example. See if you can spot the eye-catcher.

REDOUBTABLE:
(A) unanticipated
(B) unambiguous
(C) unimposing
(D) inescapable
(E) immutable

Few test-takers attempting this question would answer it correctly. Why? Once more an early answer choice has been set up to tempt you. In this case, the presence of the familiar word doubt in the unfamiliar word redoubtablesuggests that the word redoubtable has something to do with uncertainty. You know that ambiguous means uncertain in meaning. Thus, Choice B, unambiguous, is particularly appealing here. It is particularly appealing, and it is wrong.

Doubt in redoubtable is used in the sense not of uncertainty but of fear. A redoubtable foe causes fear; such a person is awesome or imposing. Someone unimposing causes no such fear. The correct answer is Choice C.

Practice Exercises

Directions: In each of the following antonym questions, a word printed in capital letters precedes five lettered words or phrases. From these five lettered words or phrases, pick the one most nearly opposite in meaning to the capitalized word.

Because some of the questions require you to distinguish fine shades of meaning, be sure to consider all the choices before deciding which one is best.

Antonym Exercise A

 1. MOURNFUL:
(A) informal
(B) sympathetic
(C) private
(D) appropriate
(E) joyous

 2. SCAD:
(A) parsimony
(B) allocation
(C) dearth
(D) restraint
(E) provision

 3. GRANDIOSE:
(A) docile
(B) unlikely to occur
(C) simple and unimposing
(D) light in weight
(E) uncommunicative

 4. ENTRENCH:
(A) defy
(B) oust
(C) extinguish
(D) squander
(E) intercede

 5. LACKLUSTER:
(A) superficial
(B) courteous
(C) vibrant
(D) complex 
(E) abundant

 6. CENSURE:
(A) augment
(B) eradicate
(C) enthrall
(D) commend
(E) reform

 7. TRANSIENCE:
(A) slowness
(B) permanence
(C) lack of caution
(D) desire for perfection
(E) original nature

 8. DESICCATE:
(A) lengthen
(B) hallow
(C) exonerate
(D) saturate
(E) anesthetize

 9. PROTRUSION:
(A) deep recess
(B) strong dislike
(C) growing scarcity
(D) illusion
(E) chaos

10. ENTICE:
(A) repel
(B) authorize
(C) baffle 
(D) misplace
(E) diminish

11. ORTHODOXY:
(A) renown
(B) trepidation
(C) unconventionality
(D) inquisitiveness
(E) remoteness

12. SUMPTUOUS:
(A) dank
(B) frequent
(C) partial
(D) restrained
(E) open

13. DISSOLUTION:
(A) retribution
(B) compliance
(C) futility
(D) persuasion 
(E) establishment

14. IRK:
(A) pry
(B) tinge
(C) beguile
(D) convince
(E) soothe

15. LIMBER:
(A) sturdy
(B) orderly
(C) durable 
(D) stiff 
(E) gloomy

16. OBLIQUITY:
(A) praise
(B) straightforwardness
(C) conformity
(D) self-righteousness
(E) depreciation

17. SLUR:
(A) sensitivity
(B) sacrifice
(C) understatement
(D) challenge
(E) commendation

18. APOTHEOSIS:
(A) departure from tradition
(B) impatience with stupidity
(C) demotion from glory
(D) surrender to impulse
(E) cause for grief

19. ENERVATE:
(A) narrate
(B) enrage
(C) accomplish
(D) invigorate
(E) acquiesce

20. PARSIMONIOUS:
(A) appropriate
(B) generous
(C) complete
(D) radiant 
(E) ongoing

Antonym Exercise B

 1. HEDGE:
(A) act on impulse
(B) refuse to represent
(C) state without qualification
(D) make a foolish comment
(E) establish a connection

 2. ABROGATE:
(A) transgress
(B) signify
(C) alleviate
(D) question
(E) ratify

 3. INDUSTRY:
(A) cleanliness
(B) pragmatism
(C) sloth
(D) promptness
(E) abasement

 4. SPUNK:
(A) success
(B) timidity
(C) growing awareness
(D) lack of intelligence
(E) loss of prestige

 5. SAGE:
(A) zealot
(B) miser
(C) braggart 
(D) fool
(E) tyrant

 6. ADMONITION:
(A) premonition
(B) hallucination
(C) escape
(D) commendation
(E) trepidation

 7. CHARY:
(A) lugubrious
(B) brash
(C) indifferent
(D) graceful
(E) scornful

 8. STUPEFY:
(A) lie
(B) bend
(C) enliven
(D) talk nonsense
(E) consider thoughtfully

 9. COGENT:
(A) contemplative
(B) unpersuasive
(C) expository
(D) stable
(E) inconceivable

10. FICKLE:
(A) spotless
(B) industrious
(C) welcome
(D) urgent
(E) loyal

11. COMPLY:
(A) simplify
(B) strive
(C) rebel
(D) unite
(E) appreciate

12. CREDIT:
(A) believe false
(B) treat as equal 
(C) make more difficult
(D) underemphasize 
(E) forget

13. STILTED:
(A) informal
(B) verbose
(C) secretive
(D) senseless
(E) tentative

14. UNGAINLY:
(A) slender
(B) graceful
(C) restrained
(D) inaccurate
(E) unnoticed

15. QUIXOTIC:
(A) slow
(B) abstemious
(C) pragmatic
(D) benevolent
(E) grave

16. DISPARITY:
(A) timidity
(B) complacency
(C) bigotry
(D) likeness
(E) influence

17. CRITICAL:
(A) unimportant
(B) uncertain
(C) silent
(D) coherent
(E) destructive

18. SOBRIETY:
(A) influence
(B) nonchalance
(C) holiness
(D) civility
(E) mirth

19. RESTIVENESS:
(A) completeness
(B) conviction
(C) concern
(D) docility
(E) petulance

20. HALLOW:
(A) keep silence
(B) prove incorrect
(C) accuse openly
(D) desecrate
(E) instigate

Antonym Exercise C

 1. HARBINGER:
(A) ascetic
(B) miser
(C) counselor
(D) follower
(E) braggart

 2. SPUR:
(A) embitter
(B) discourage
(C) impress
(D) mislead
(E) ignore

 3. DISJOINTED:
(A) responsible
(B) connected
(C) implied
(D) useful
(E) imprecise

 4. MEALYMOUTHED:
(A) hungry
(B) indefinite
(C) tightlipped
(D) sincere
(E) apathetic

 5. PREVARICATE:
(A) postulate
(B) emphasize
(C) support in theory
(D) consider thoughtfully
(E) state truthfully

 6. LUMINARY:
(A) impostor
(B) nonentity
(C) pilgrim
(D) braggart
(E) mutineer

 7. TESTY:
(A) erroneous
(B) uncommunicative
(C) even-tempered
(D) quick-witted
(E) industrious

 8. NEFARIOUS:
(A) lackadaisical
(B) eccentric
(C) exemplary
(D) corrigible
(E) hypocritical

 9. BEGRUDGE:
(A) mourn silently
(B) grant freely
(C) hunger for
(D) advance rapidly
(E) fight back

10. BILK:
(A) reduce in size
(B) make famous
(C) roughen
(D) renovate
(E) pay in full

11. COMPOSE:
(A) disturb
(B) reveal
(C) strengthen
(D) isolate
(E) prevent

12. OCCLUDE:
(A) determine
(B) transcend
(C) surround
(D) open
(E) regulate

13. AMBIGUITY:
(A) extent
(B) success
(C) clarity
(D) normality
(E) expression

14. AMELIORATION:
(A) prevention
(B) aggravation
(C) distraction
(D) indifference
(E) dissuasion

15. CAVIL:
(A) discern
(B) disclose
(C) introduce
(D) flatter
(E) commend

16. SKEPTICAL:
(A) theoretical
(B) indifferent
(C) ready to believe
(D) eager for change
(E) lost in thought

17. FLEDGLING:
(A) experienced person
(B) shy onlooker
(C) social outcast
(D) fugitive
(E) adversary

18. CRASS:
(A) boastful
(B) temporary
(C) cheerful
(D) refined
(E) extensive

19. RECALCITRANT:
(A) tractable
(B) erratic
(C) intuitive
(D) vigorous
(E) rambling

20. PROTRACT:
(A) defy
(B) supplement
(C) postpone
(D) shorten
(E) design

Antonym Exercise D

 1. PRIM:
(A) rare
(B) careful
(C) unnecessary
(D) improper
(E) decisive

 2. REPUGNANCE:
(A) attraction
(B) lethargy
(C) blame
(D) virtue
(E) awe

 3. NETTLE:
(A) disentangle
(B) mollify
(C) magnify
(D) muffle
(E) recompense

 4. REPLETE:
(A) unwrinkled
(B) devoid
(C) vulgar
(D) matchless
(E) unsympathetic

 5. UNASSUAGED:
(A) presumed
(B) deceptive
(C) singular
(D) faulty
(E) soothed

 6. PALTRY:
(A) munificent
(B) improvident
(C) random
(D) cautious
(E) obsolete

 7. CONCLUSIVE:
(A) difficult to express
(B) bringing bad luck
(C) easy to solve
(D) lacking merit
(E) open to question

 8. RESOURCEFULNESS:
(A) wealth
(B) gratitude
(C) melancholy
(D) incompetence
(E) frustration

 9. DISSUADE:
(A) extol
(B) exhort
(C) intensify
(D) complicate
(E) precede

10. SPLENETIC:
(A) lackluster
(B) heartless
(C) diffident
(D) constant
(E) cordial

11. VIRULENCE:
(A) pallor
(B) orderliness
(C) femininity
(D) harmlessness
(E) cowardice

12. ADHERENT:
(A) fugitive
(B) dissembler
(C) opponent
(D) educator
(E) witness

13. OSCILLATE:
(A) entreat
(B) intensify
(C) remain fixed
(D) expand gradually
(E) wither away

14. ASPERITY:
(A) gentility
(B) superiority
(C) kindness
(D) clarity
(E) vagueness

15. UNSCATHED:
(A) honest
(B) gathered
(C) injured
(D) cleansed
(E) forgiven

16. FETTER:
(A) diminish
(B) enervate
(C) liberate
(D) return
(E) cure

17. AUTONOMY:
(A) dependence
(B) animation
(C) renown
(D) altruism
(E) antipathy

18. SLACK:
(A) rough
(B) active
(C) liberal
(D) dependent
(E) familiar

19. RECOIL:
(A) plunge forward
(B) cease firing
(C) skirt an issue
(D) facilitate
(E) surrender

20. ENCUMBER:
(A) disburden
(B) perform easily
(C) challenge boldly
(D) observe with care
(E) suppress

Antonym Exercise E

 1. OPACITY:
(A) iridescence
(B) firmness
(C) transparence
(D) poverty
(E) slum

 2. PREDILECTION:
(A) postponement
(B) afterthought
(C) lamentation
(D) reoccurrence
(E) aversion

 3. SEEDY:
(A) elegant
(B) intricate
(C) tranquil
(D) irregular
(E) slow

 4. BOGGLE:
(A) disentangle
(B) repudiate
(C) ascertain
(D) remain unruffled
(E) lack planning

 5. HIDEBOUND:
(A) strong-willed
(B) open-minded
(C) thin-skinned
(D) tenderhearted
(E) scatterbrained

 6. CASTIGATE:
(A) diminish
(B) imitate
(C) compare
(D) reward
(E) misjudge

 7. GAMBOL:
(A) dodge
(B) masquerade
(C) digress
(D) plod
(E) vex

 8. RAUCOUS:
(A) orderly
(B) absorbent
(C) mellifluous
(D) contentious
(E) buoyant

 9. TAPER:
(A) emphasize
(B) restore
(C) split
(D) broaden
(E) modify

10. HIGH-HANDED:
(A) dejected
(B) reasonable
(C) hard-handed
(D) short-handed
(E) dynamic

11. DIMINUTION:
(A) measurement
(B) proximity
(C) augmentation
(D) orderliness
(E) inclination

12. DISTEND:
(A) tell the truth
(B) respond as expected
(C) approximate
(D) collect
(E) shrink

13. EMBROIL:
(A) disengage
(B) remonstrate
(C) refute thoroughly
(D) answer hypothetically
(E) consider genuinely

14. VOUCHSAFE:
(A) postpone
(B) dissemble
(C) endanger
(D) prohibit
(E) justify

15. JETTISON:
(A) salvage
(B) decelerate
(C) muffle
(D) distract
(E) anchor

16. STOIC:
(A) savant
(B) herald
(C) whiner
(D) victor
(E) bystander

17. GAMELY:
(A) fearfully
(B) diligently
(C) clumsily
(D) gloomily
(E) respectfully

18. CRESTFALLEN:
(A) haughty
(B) impolite
(C) frivolous
(D) tentative
(E) rough

19. DESULTORY:
(A) apologetic
(B) independent
(C) laudatory
(D) questionable
(E) methodical

20. PULCHRITUDE:
(A) antipathy
(B) unsightliness
(C) inexperience
(D) languor
(E) rancor

ANSWER KEY

Antonym Exercise A

1. E	6. D	11. C	16. B
2. C	7. B	12. D	17. E
3. C	8. D	13. E	18. C
4. B	9. A	14. E	19. D
5. C	10. A	15. D	20. B

Antonym Exercise B

1. C	6. D	11. C	16. D
2. E	7. B	12. A	17. A
3. C	8. C	13. A	18. E
4. B	9. B	14. B	19. D
5. D	10. E	15. C	20. D

Antonym Exercise C

1. D	6. B	11. A	16. C
2. B	7. C	12. D	17. A
3. B	8. C	13. C	18. D
4. D	9. B	14. B	19. A
5. E	10. E	15. E	20. D

Antonym Exercise D

1. D	6. A	11. D	16. C
2. A	7. E	12. C	17. A
3. B	8. D	13. C	18. B
4. B	9. B	14. C	19. A
5. E	10. E	15. C	20. A

Antonym Exercise E

1. C	6. D	11. C	16. C
2. E	7. D	12. E	17. A
3. A	8. C	13. A	18. A
4. D	9. D	14. D	19. E
5. B	10. B	15. A	20. B