Antonyms

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SSAT Elementary Level Verbal › Antonyms

Questions 1 - 10
1

Complete this analogy.

Dishonest is to __________ as shy is to confident.

straightforward

aggressive

benign

relentless

unattractive

Explanation

"Shy" and "confident" are "antonyms" of one another. An "antonym" is when two words have opposite meanings. So, which of these words means the opposite of "dishonest?" The correct answer is "straightforward" means honest and simple. Additionally, "aggressive" means likely to attack; "benign" means not harmful, safe; "relentless" means continuous, not stopping; "unattractive" means ugly, not attractive.

2

Complete the analogy.

Dull is to sharp as ____________.

dark is to light

hairy is to monkey

quiet is to calm

dusty is to dirty

clean is to spotless

Explanation

To complete the analogy, you must determine the relationship between the first two words. "Dull" and "sharp" are antonyms, or opposites, so the answer must be two antonyms. "Dark" is the opposite of light, so that must be the correct answer.

3

Hungry is to full as . . .

exhausted is to energetic

sleepy is to bed

leaf is to tree

music is to dancing

quiet is to indoors

Explanation

Since "hungry" and "full" are opposites, we need to pick out another pair of words which are also opposites. Since "exhausted" ("very tired") is an opposite of "energetic," "exhausted is to energetic" is the correct answer.

4

Cold is to hot as . . .

day is to night

bear is to forest

cold is to snow

light is to lightbulb

star is to sky

Explanation

Since "cold" and "hot" are opposites, we're looking for an answer choice in which the two words are opposites. Since "day" is the opposite of "night," "day is to night" is the correct answer.

5

Welcome is to excluded as prepared is to . . .

unready

burdened

ready

limited

beautiful

Explanation

"Welcome," when used as an adjective, means "of a guest or new arrival: gladly received," and "excluded" is an adjective that means "deny (someone) access to or bar (someone) from a place, group, or privilege," so the two words are antonyms. That means that we need to pick out an answer choice that consists of two antonyms. "Ready" cannot be the correct answer, then, because "ready" is a synonym, not an antonym, of "prepared." "Unready," however, is an antonym of "prepared," just like "welcome" is an antonym of "excluded," so "unready" is the correct answer.

6

Complete this analogy.

Forget is to remember as __________ is to compliment.

insult

praise

destroy

permit

descend

Explanation

"Forget" and "remember" have opposite meanings, they are therefore "antonyms." To solve this problem you need to figure out which of these words has the opposite meaning to "compliment." Well, "compliment" means say something nice about someone so the best available antonym is "insult," which means say mean things to someone. Additionally, "descend" means go down; "permit" means allow to happen; "praise" means celebrate, say nice things about, compliment.

7

Complete this analogy.

Backward is to forward as __________.

never is to always

small is to little

famished is to hungry

wish is to desire

protect is to defend

Explanation

“Backward” and “forward” are opposites, or antonyms, so we need to pick out an answer choice that also consists of a pair of antonyms. While “famished is to hungry” and “never is to always” might each look like a potentially correct answer, “famished” is an adjective that means “extremely hungry,” so “famished” and “hungry” are actually synonyms, not antonyms, so “famished is to hungry” cannot be the correct answer; however, “never” and “always” are opposites, just like “backward” and “forward” are opposites, so “never is to always” is the correct answer.

8

Complete this analogy.

Urban is to rural as __________.

left is to right

sorry is to regretful

tennis is to racket

glass is to shatter

finger is to hand

Explanation

Since "urban" means "in, relating to, or characteristic of a city or town," and "rural" means "in, relating to, or characteristic of the countryside rather than the town," the two words are opposites. So, we need to pick out an answer choice which includes two words that are opposites. Two answer choices include two adjectives, "left is to right" and "sorry is to apologetic," and "sorry is to regretful" cannot be the correct answer because "sorry" means the same thing as "regretful." "Left is to right" is the correct answer because just like urban is the opposite of rural, left is an opposite of right.

9

Analogies: Complete this analogy.

Hungry is to full as malicious is to __________.

affectionate

hateful

surprising

excited

disappointing

Explanation

"Hungry" and "full" are antonyms of one another because they have opposite meanings, so to solve this analogy, you need to determine the best available antonym of “malicious.” “Malicious” means is spiteful or done out of hatred, so the best antonym is "affectionate," a word that means fond or done out of fondness for someone.

10

Complete the analogy.

Early is to late ________________.

open is to closed

store is to open

water is to drink

morning is to sunrise

midnight is to nighttime

Explanation

"Early" and "late" are antonyms, or opposites, so the answer must be two antonyms. "Open" is the opposite of "closed," so that must be the correct answer.

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