noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   A word that is nearly an antonym, when an antonym is defined strictly by complete negation or polar oppositeness. (Many reference works use a looser definition of antonym that lumps these words into the single category of antonyms; some make the more rigorous distinction.)

   "[…] Near-antonyms may be treated in a similar fashion."

Example

More examples

"[…] Near-antonyms may be treated in a similar fashion."

Etymology

From near + antonym.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.