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Words that have two meanings that are opposites: let's bash these TTTs

fucking "deceptively" "the question was de...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
Oversight
Racy school
  02/15/22
ooh good one! "this oversight was a result of a seri...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
That's not a function of the word but of pragmatics pertaini...
Fragrant ruddy site
  02/15/22
fine - i mean words that CAN, depending on context, mean two...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
Broadly speaking, any word can have two opposite meanings in...
Fragrant ruddy site
  02/15/22
credited analysis ty!! i don't necessarily share your inter...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
need julia here
comical range ladyboy
  02/15/22
inflammable
floppy rough-skinned yarmulke
  02/15/22
(dr. nick)
Up-to-no-good idiot legend
  02/15/22
well the issue with that one is that the two words sound lik...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
cleave
lascivious set
  02/15/22
titc cleave
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
that one was my contribution the last time we did this threa...
free-loading address codepig
  02/16/22
so far oversight is the only one
spruce marketing idea
  02/15/22
Sanction
Autistic white cruise ship
  02/15/22
...
marvelous hyperventilating theatre gaming laptop
  02/15/22
another good one!
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
faggot
grizzly razzle stain digit ratio
  02/15/22
🤔🤔🤔
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
Overlook
Autistic white cruise ship
  02/15/22
cr similar to oversight
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
They're called contronyms btw, u can find huge lists
Autistic white cruise ship
  02/15/22
tyty! it would be funny if "contronym" also meant...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
...
Autistic white cruise ship
  02/16/22
...
Fragrant ruddy site
  02/15/22
science
multi-colored mediation university
  02/15/22
lol, fair
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
cavalier
vibrant apoplectic background story principal's office
  02/15/22
rly? what are the two meanings?
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
moot
glittery rigpig
  02/15/22
whoa i didn't even know it had the "debatable" mea...
spectacular factory reset button
  02/15/22
...
oomox
  04/07/26


Poast new message in this thread



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:16 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

fucking "deceptively"

"the question was deceptively simple" can mean that it seems simple but isn't, OR that it doesn't seem simple but it is

WHYYY

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974432)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:17 PM
Author: Racy school

Oversight

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974433)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:18 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

ooh good one!

"this oversight was a result of a serious lack of oversight"

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974437)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:18 PM
Author: Fragrant ruddy site

That's not a function of the word but of pragmatics pertaining to the properties of the question. I thought this thread was about stuff like innervate / enervate.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974438)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:22 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

fine - i mean words that CAN, depending on context, mean two things that are opposites*

but innervate/enervate is welcome here too, equally TTT

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974453)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:35 PM
Author: Fragrant ruddy site

Broadly speaking, any word can have two opposite meanings in the sense you mean if you vary the pragmatics—that is why irony is possible and so rich in language. Your issue seems to be with imprecision introduced by using a word like "deceptively" to modify an adjective, since there's ambiguity about whether what is "deceptive" is the easiness or the initial appearance while the true nature is easy.

The meaning can be cleaned up a bit by just modifying the word order and punctuation:

"Deceptively, the test was simple" to my ear sounds like the test was in fact simple;

"The test was simple—deceptively" sounds to me like it appeared simple but that appearance was deceptive.

Still, all told this is an unfortunate construction and best avoided altogether save when strategic ambiguity is the goal.

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974532)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:41 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

credited analysis ty!! i don't necessarily share your interpretations of the two examples you gave, but good call about the ambiguity of what "deceptively" is modifying

and yeah i realized after poasting that someone was probably going to point out that ANY word can mean diff things based on context >__>

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974553)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:22 PM
Author: comical range ladyboy

need julia here

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974454)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:23 PM
Author: floppy rough-skinned yarmulke

inflammable

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974458)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:24 PM
Author: Up-to-no-good idiot legend

(dr. nick)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974466)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:26 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

well the issue with that one is that the two words sound like opposites but are synonyms. also TTT. i'm guessing the "in" is from "inflame" but i'm too lazy to verify

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974475)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:24 PM
Author: lascivious set

cleave

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974462)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:26 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

titc cleave

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974477)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 16th, 2022 3:06 PM
Author: free-loading address codepig

that one was my contribution the last time we did this thread

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43978151)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:25 PM
Author: spruce marketing idea

so far oversight is the only one

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974468)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:27 PM
Author: Autistic white cruise ship

Sanction

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974480)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:27 PM
Author: marvelous hyperventilating theatre gaming laptop



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974481)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:28 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

another good one!

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974485)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:27 PM
Author: grizzly razzle stain digit ratio

faggot

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974482)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:34 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

🤔🤔🤔

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974524)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:29 PM
Author: Autistic white cruise ship

Overlook

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974492)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:31 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

cr similar to oversight

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974509)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:30 PM
Author: Autistic white cruise ship

They're called contronyms btw, u can find huge lists

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974499)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:32 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

tyty! it would be funny if "contronym" also meant "words that sound like antonyms but are synonyms"

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974513)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 16th, 2022 3:04 PM
Author: Autistic white cruise ship



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43978133)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:36 PM
Author: Fragrant ruddy site



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974536)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:33 PM
Author: multi-colored mediation university

science

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974519)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:42 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

lol, fair

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974557)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:34 PM
Author: vibrant apoplectic background story principal's office

cavalier

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974525)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:43 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

rly? what are the two meanings?

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974559)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:35 PM
Author: glittery rigpig

moot

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974531)



Reply Favorite

Date: February 15th, 2022 9:44 PM
Author: spectacular factory reset button

whoa i didn't even know it had the "debatable" meaning; i always just used it to mean "irrelevant"

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#43974567)



Reply Favorite

Date: April 7th, 2026 10:21 PM
Author: oomox



(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5032956&forum_id=2)#49802525)