Antonyms: Verbs - HSPT Language Skills

The word "transfer" literally means to carry across (as in carrying across a border). When someone transfers goods or money, he or she sends them to someone else (or to another place). In contrast to such conveyance, we could consider an antonym to be "to hold on to." The word "retain" means just this, namely to keep something in someone's own possession (instead of giving it).

The word "extol" means to praise. Several options among the answers are synonyms for this—"laud" and "acclaim". The word "disclaim" is not an antonym. It means to deny. This is not the opposite of praising, however. The word "deride" means to show contempt about something. It is related to "ridicule" and "ridiculous"—the idea being that "deriding" means to make fun of something.

When we put something "into jeopardy," we put that thing at risk. The verb "jeopardize" merely signifies the act of putting something into such a risky situation. The best contrast to this is to protect the thing. Among the options provided, only "preserve" has this sense of protecting in contrast to endangering the thing in question.

The most frequent use of "corroborate" is probably in the sense of a courtroom testimony "corroborating" the truth or falsity of some claim. Such corroboration helps to support the claim being made. Such evidence is the opposite of contradicting evident—i.e. evidence that seems to speak against the claim being made.

We often speak of divulging in the context of secrets that are divulged. This means that they were revealed. Surprisingly the word is related to "vulgar" which means the masses or the common people. When you divulge something, you tell it to everyone—even the "commoners." In contrast to this, when we conceal something, we "cover it up" or keep it from being known or seen.

The word “quiescent” is related to “quiet,” which is itself related to the Latin for “to rest or be at peace.” Something “quiescent” is at rest in the sense of not being active. For instance, a “quiescent volcano” is a volcano currently dormant or in a state of inactivity. In contrast to such inactivity, “lively” is an appropriate antonym.

The word "accost" does not have to do with the price of goods. Strangely enough, it comes from the Latin that literally means to be at the side of someone or something else. In English, it means to speak to in a strong and vigorous manner. Often, it is an aggressive kind of speech, confrontational in nature. The point for this question is that accosting is directly addressing something. In contrast to this, evading something is avoiding it, quite the opposite of dealing with something "head on."

The word "alleviate" comes from Latin roots meaning light (in the sense of being not heavy). To alleviate something is to make it lighter or to reduce it. Related words are "levity" (meaning humor or light-heartedness) and "levitate." The best contrast among the options given is "exacerbate," meaning to make worse. It is related to "acerbic," which means biting and sharp—as in "acerbic wit."

When two people dispute something, they do not agree on the topic. If we isolate one of those people, he or she might say, "I dispute your claim that (e.g.) the Middle Ages are underappreciated." This means that the person does not believe the claim about the importance of the Middle Ages. In general, dispute can mean either to argue about or (as we now see) to question the truth or validity of an assertion. In contrast to such doubt or questioning, one could accept or recognize a fact as being true.

None of the options provided here are great antonyms, but we can definitely remove bad candidates and find an answer that is good enough for our purposes. The word "ponder" means to think about deeply. To "scrutinize" something is to pay attention to its details, and to "observe" and "consider" are both options that at least note consideration of an object. Of course, observation and consideration are rather uninvolved in contrast to pondering. In another question, they might be options for correct answers. However, we have the option "disregard." This is more opposed to pondering than "observe" and "consider." Since "remark" is really not useful at all for our purposes, the answer must be "disregard."

The word "illuminate" is most often associated with its literal, physical notion—the phenomenon of light that illuminates a given surface. However, there are no words here that are directly related to such physical light. The word "illuminate" can be used to describe intellectual endeavors, when one thing "sheds light" on another—that is, makes the other thing clearer. In contrast to such illumination, there is the phenomenon of an overly complicated argument. When someone complicates a matter, he or she makes it less clear.

A set of "recollections" is a group of memories that have been gathered together. (Yes, the word is a bit like saying "re+collecting" as in "collecting together again.") When we recollect something, we attempt to bring back and report such a memory. If we do not call back such a thought, we then would omit it from such recollection. "Reminisce" and even "commemorate" are both rather synonymous, while "disabuse" and "retain" are neither synonyms nor antonyms for our purposes. Therefore, "omit" is the best option among those provided for an antonym.

When someone recants something, he or she "gives back" something that he or she held to be true. Generally, it is a question of recanting an opinion or a statement. For instance, we might say, "Thomas refused to recant his belief in Aristotle's writings, for he believed the Greek thinker to have spoken the truth." Thomas refuses to say that he no longer believes in the truthfulness of Aristotle. In contrast to such recanting, one can "assume" something by taking it up. Often this has the sense of "assuming an identity" or "assuming an uncertain fact to be true." The general point is that "assuming" means to take up as opposed to "recanting" which means something like to let go or give up.

When someone is culpable, he or she is guilty of something. Evidence or arguments that are "exculpatory" are ones that help to show the innocence of a person. They take away the guilt—"ex" (away) + "cuplate" (guilt / fault). The options "pardon" and "absolve" are both relative synonyms for this. To "defame" someone is to ruin his or her reputation. If there were no other options, this might pass for a distant antonym option; however, the best antonym option is "incriminate," which literally means to make into a criminal, or, by a more standard definition, to make someone seem guilty.

"Obfuscate" is a verb which means to make unclear; to confuse or bewilder. "Simplify" is a verb which means to make clear. This is the exact opposite of "obfuscate."

"Enigma" is a noun meaning a mystery or a puzzle. You may use an "enigma" to "obfuscate" a situation, but they are not antonyms.

"Stubborn" and "headstrong" are both adjectives meaning willful or determined.

"Plaudit" is a noun meaning praise.

The word "pacify" comes from the Latin "pax" or "pacis," meaning peace. To pacify someone means to make that person calm or at peace. In contrast to this, to incense someone is to make him or her angry. This latter word is related to the word "incendiary," which describes something that creates conflict. Both words come from Latin roots meaning "to set fire to"—as though you were setting fire to the emotions of another person.

A number of the options—"scorch," "rarefy," and "evaporate"—all are trying to make you read "absorb" in the sense of absorbing a liquid (like a sponge); however, the verb "absorb" can also mean to engross or deeply interest. In contrast to such an interesting thing, something that "wearies" someone makes his or her interest wane and disappear. This latter option is by far the best among those provided.

A "provocation" is an action that incites or brings about a strong reaction from someone. Most often, this involves making someone angry. Thus, to "provoke" someone means just that—to bring about such an angry reaction. In contrast to this, to "allay" means to soften or diminish the intensity of someone's emotional state. We often say that something "allays" someone's fears. That is, it reduces them or "puts them to rest."

The word "mollify" comes from the Latin meaning soft. Something is "mollified" when it is lessened in intensity—when it is "softened." Generally, this applies to the reducing of anxiety or annoyance. It is quite the opposite to become "vexed"—for this means to become annoyed.

When something is intriguing, it is interesting—likely exciting emotions of interest and engagement. Thus, "to intrigue" someone is to make such interest come to birth. In contrast to this, "to stupefy" is to render someone senseless. Now, this can be in the sense of shocking someone—which could be somewhat (though not entirely) synonymous to our word. However, it also has the general sense of making someone unable to think. Since there are no other candidate antonyms among the options provided, this is the best choice for this question.