Synonyms and antonyms
A synonym means the same as another word, and an antonym means the opposite. Here's how to find the right one, and dodge the traps the wrong answers set.
Chapter 1
What are synonyms and antonyms?
A synonym is a word that means the same, or nearly the same, as another word. An antonym is a word that means the opposite.
Each question gives you one word and asks for its synonym or its antonym. The question tells you which, so read it first: the wrong answers are chosen to catch anyone who mixes the two up.
The question. Same meaning, or opposite? Here it’s the same.
The word. The one you have to match: eminent.
Synonyms and Antonyms are both games in Rush. Chapter 3 shows what changes for opposites, and chapter 5 the exam’s version with two groups of words.
eminent
Which word means the same?
- Option 1: elderly
- Option 2: imminent
- Option 3: unknown
- Option 4: distinguished
A Verbal question from Rush, level 3.
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Synonym: same meaning
Swap it in and the sentence still means the same: shut the door, close the door.
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Antonym: opposite meaning
Swap it in and the sentence turns round: shut the door, open the door.
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- castlenounnaming word
- shoutverbdoing word
- talladjectivedescribing word
- slowlyadverbhow word
Same kind of word
The answer is always the same kind of word as the one you’re given. Shut, close and open are all verbs (doing words).
Chapter 2
Solve it in 3 steps.
Here’s the question, one step at a time.
The question
eminent
Which word means the same?
- Option 1: elderly
- Option 2: imminent
- Option 3: unknown
- Option 4: distinguished
A Verbal question from Rush, level 3.
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Step 1
Say what it means first.
Before you read the options, say the word’s meaning in your own words. An eminent scientist is famous and respected for her work. So you’re looking for a word that means famous and respected.
An eminent scientist gave a talk at our school.
famous and respected
Say it before you look at the options.
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Step 2
Cross out the traps.
Two options are traps you can spot fast. Unknown is the opposite: nobody has heard of you. Imminent looks like eminent, but it means about to happen, like an imminent storm. Cross them both out.
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Step 3
Swap the rest into the sentence.
Put each one in place of eminent. An elderly scientist is old, but that says nothing about being famous, and a young scientist can be eminent too. A distinguished scientist is famous and respected: the same.
An
Only says she’s oldelderlyscientistA distinguished scientist
Famous and respected
Three mistakes it sets
| The mistake | Do this instead |
|---|---|
| Picking the opposite. Unknown is about how famous someone is, so it seems to fit. But it points the other way. | Check your word means the same, not just that it’s about the same thing. |
| Picking the look-alike. Imminent has nearly the same letters and sound as eminent, so it jumps out. It means about to happen. | Go by meaning, never by looks. Check twice any option that looks like the question word. |
| Picking a word that goes with it. Plenty of eminent people are old, so elderly feels linked. But elderly only means old. | Swap it into the sentence. If the meaning changes, it’s out. |
So it’s distinguished. A distinguished scientist is famous and respected, just like an eminent one.
Remember: Meaning first. Cross the opposite. Swap it.
Chapter 3
Antonyms: flip it first.
Antonyms is the other Rush game on this page. The steps are the same with one change: you flip the meaning, and the traps swap sides.
An antonym question gives you a word and asks for its opposite. You still say what the word means first. Then you turn it round, so you know what the opposite must say.
The traps swap sides too. In a synonym question, the opposite is the trap. In an antonym question, the trap is a word that means the same, and most Rush antonym questions have one.
resident
Which word means the opposite?
- Option 1: visitor
- Option 2: inhabitant
- Option 3: neighbour
- Option 4: landlord
A Verbal question from Rush, level 2.
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Step 1
Say it, then flip it.
A resident lives in a place. Flip it: someone who doesn’t live there and only comes for a while.
residentlives here
flip?only comes for a while
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Step 2
Cross out the twin.
Inhabitant means the same as resident: someone who lives in a place. It’s there to catch you if you forget you want the opposite. Cross it out first.
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Step 3
Check it’s opposite, not just different.
Neighbour and landlord are different from resident, but neither turns it round. A neighbour lives nearby, so is a resident too, and a landlord owns the home. A visitor comes, then leaves: that’s the flip.
So it’s visitor. A resident lives in a place, and a visitor only comes for a while.
Remember: Flip it. Cross out the twin.
Four kinds of opposite
Knowing the kind tells you what to look for, and which trap is coming.
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On a scale: go to the other end
Flip it just as far.
Cold and hot sit at the two ends, with cool and warm between them. So the opposite of cold is hot. Trap: warm. It’s on the other side, but not far enough.
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presentorabsent
Either one or the other
Nothing in between: if it isn’t one, it’s the other.
At school you’re present or you’re absent, and alive and dead work the same way. Trap: late. A late pupil still turns up, so late isn’t the opposite of present.
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lend⇄borrow
Partners: two ends of one thing
One can’t happen without the other.
If I lend you a pen, you borrow it. So the opposite of borrow is lend, and buy and sell work the same way. Trap: take. Borrowing is a kind of taking, so take is on the same side.
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UNWRAP
Made with a prefix: read the whole word
un‑, dis‑, in‑, im‑, il‑ and ir‑ can all mean not.
The opposite of wrap is unwrap. Trap: untie. It starts the same way, but it’s the opposite of tie. And not every word takes one: there’s no unsad, so the opposite of sad is happy.
Word parts that flip
These pairs come up again and again. Change one part and the meaning turns round.
- carefulcareless
- includeexclude
- importexport
- increasedecrease
- maximumminimum
- ascenddescend
Chapter 4
The catches.
They work in both games. Know them and they stop being catches.
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Two fit? Match how strong
Same meaning, and the same strength.
Devour means eat fast and hungrily. Nibble is eating too, but in tiny bites, so it’s far too gentle. Gobble matches devour, so gobble is the synonym.
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Two meanings? Try the other one
If no option fits one meaning, try the other.
Rush asks for the opposite of rash. Itchy is the trap: it goes with the spots. The other meaning, acting without thinking, flips to cautious.
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Right idea, wrong kind of word
An adjective needs an adjective.
The opposite of patient is impatient. Trap: patiently. It looks close, but it’s an adverb (a how word), as in “wait patiently”. Endings help: ‑ly usually makes an adverb.
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FEARLESS
‑less means without: without fear
New word? Look inside it
Use the parts you know, then cross out what you can.
Fearless is fear + less: without fear, so brave. Un‑, dis‑ and im‑ often mean not. Then cross out the opposite, the look-alike and any word of the wrong kind. If two options mean the same as each other, it’s usually neither.
Chapter 5: In the exam
Two groups: one word from each.
Many 11+ papers set synonyms and antonyms this way. Rush asks one word at a time, which builds speed, and the steps you know still work.
The questionFind two words, one from each group, that are closest in meaning. (start, begin, laugh) (finish, joke, giggle)
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Step 1
Cross out pairs inside one group.
Start and begin mean the same, but they’re in the same group. The answer takes one word from each group, so they can’t be it. Setters put a pair like this in on purpose.
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Step 2
Check across the groups.
Only laugh is left in the first group. Finish is the opposite of start, so it’s out. Joke goes with laugh, because a joke makes you laugh, but a joke isn’t a laugh. Giggle is a kind of laugh.
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Step 3
Swap it in, then mark both.
“We couldn’t stop laughing” and “we couldn’t stop giggling” mean nearly the same. Mark both words: laugh in the first group and giggle in the second.
So it’s laugh and giggle. They’re the only pair, one from each group, that mean the same.
Remember: One from each group.
Other ways the exam asks it
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Opposites, two groups
The same layout, but you find the two most opposite: ancient and modern. Trap: noisy and loud, one in each group. They mean the same, put there for anyone who forgets they want opposites.
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My sister is a bright pupil.
One word in a passage
Reading questions ask what a word means in one line of the passage, with five options. The traps are its other meanings: bright can mean shiny, sunny or cheerful. In this sentence it means clever.
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Groups that look alike
Some papers fill the groups with words that start the same, so they all look alike. Slow down and say what each one means. Persuade and convince both mean get someone to agree.
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One word in different forms
Some papers put one word in different forms in a group. Careful and carefully both look like the opposite of reckless, but only careful is an adjective, like reckless. Carefully is an adverb.
Chapter 6
Try it yourself.
Six real questions from Rush, easy to hard, 60 seconds on the clock. The label above each question names the game: SAME MEANING is Synonyms, and OPPOSITE MEANING is Antonyms.
Use the steps
- Say what it means first.
- Cross out the traps.
- Swap the rest into the sentence.
Remember: Meaning first. Cross the opposite. Swap it.
For parents.
What parents ask us about synonyms and antonyms.
Questions parents ask
What is the difference between a synonym and an antonym?
A synonym means the same, or nearly the same: big and large. An antonym means the opposite: big and small. The instruction tells you which is wanted, so read it before the options. Setters put the other kind among the wrong answers to catch a child who mixes them up.
Is there an 11+ synonyms list my child should learn?
A list helps less than you'd expect, because the test can pair any word with any partner. Learning words in families works better: when a child meets frugal, they learn economical and thrifty with it, and wasteful as its opposite.
What if my child doesn't know the word at all?
Work from what they do know. Rule out any option they can, such as two options that mean the same as each other. Then look inside the word: un-, im- and dis- often mean 'not', and -less means 'without'.
Does a synonym have to be the same kind of word?
Yes. A synonym has to swap into a sentence and keep its meaning, so an adjective (a describing word) needs an adjective. In 'a rapid river', swift swaps in and speed doesn't, although both are about going fast. If an option is a different kind of word from the one you were given, cross it out.
Rush: 11+ Practice & KS2 SATsPractise synonyms and antonyms in Rush.
- Synonyms and Antonyms as 100-second games, easy at first and harder as your child improves
- Every miss kept with the right answer and why
- Free to start, with a new family game every day
On the App Store for iPhone and iPad
Synonyms and Antonyms are free, and four more games too, plus a new family game every day. All 41 games are £24.99 a year after a free week1, or £3.99 a month.