David Zapatka
Reader JoAnn Weston writes about the October 2025 WOTM column, “Hello David. Here is another contronym for your list: “Bound,” meaning to leap, but also the opposite, tied up. I enjoy your column, very clever! Oh, another one—“Leave” meaning to go and to remain!”
In serendipitous fashion, friend and fellow verbivore, Richard Lederer, wrote a column in the Mensa Bulletin about the same topic as my October column, contronyms. Several readers commented on this word, showing interest in its use. Here were some of his examples of “contronym” in use.
Contronym—con·tro·nym ˈkän-trə-nim, noun, a word having two meanings that contradict one another
* out. visible; invisible: a. The moon is out. b. The lights are out.
* with. alongside; against: a. England fought with France against Germany. b. England fought with France.
* clip. fasten; separate: a. Clip the coupon to the newspaper. b. Clip the coupon from the newspaper.
* fast. firmly in one place; rapidly from one place to another: a. The pegs held the tent fast. b. She ran fast.
* bolt. to secure in place; to dart away: a. I’ll bolt the door. b. Did you see the horse bolt?
* trim. add things to; cut away: a. Let’s trim the Christmas tree. b. Let’s trim the hedge.
* dust. remove material from; spread material on: a. Three times a week, they dust the floor. b. Three times each season, they dust the crops.
* weather. withstand; wear away: a. Strong ships weather storms. b. Wind can weather rocks.
* handicap. advantage; disadvantage: a. What’s your handicap in golf? b. His lack of education is a handicap.
* commencement. beginning; conclusion: a. Beautiful weather marked the commencement of spring. b. She won an award at her high school commencement.
* hold up. support; hinder: a. Please hold up the sagging branch. b. Accidents hold up the flow of traffic.
* keep up. continue to fall; continue to stay up: a. The farmers hope that the rain will keep up. b. Damocles hoped that the sword above his head would keep up.
* left. departed from; remaining: a. Ten people left the room. b. Five people were left in the room.
* dress. put items on; remove items from: a. Let’s dress for the ball. b. Let’s dress the chicken for cooking.
* temper. soften; strengthen: a. You must temper your anger with reason. b. Factories temper steel with additives.
* cleave. separate; adhere firmly: a. A strong blow will cleave a plank in two. b. Bits of metal cleave to a magnet.
* give out. produce; stop producing: a. A good furnace will give out enough energy to heat the house. b. A broken furnace will soon give out.
* burn. to destroy; to create: a. Let’s burn the evidence. b. Let’s burn a CD.
What are some of your favorite contronyms? Please submit your experiences or any word you may like to share, along with your insights and comments, to dzapatka@wbhsi.net.