Contronym

A word which is defined as both itself and the opposite of itself.

E.G

“Because of their oversight, Russia was sanctioned by NATO”

Can mean that Russia was given approval (sanctioned) by NATO because of their vigilance (oversight)

Or that Russia was punished (sanctioned) by NATO because they egregiously overlooked something (oversight)

Words that can perform or imply two directly contradictory actions are called contronyms

1. I clipped (attached) on a bow tie after I got my hair clipped (detached, cut off) at the barber shop

2. The House Oversight Committee’s role is to perform oversight (strenuous watchdog duties) by ensuring that no oversights (mistakes, errors) are made in the government

3. I screened (blocked) the light from my eyes so I could see the movie that was being screened (shown)

4. I was the latest to rent (buy) the apartment that my landlord had been renting (selling, leasing) for five years now

by Alex-2598 March 23, 2021

Contronym

Two contradicting words in a sentence that are describing the same noun.

'The well-behaved and disobedient child'

You can't use that, that's a contronym.

by TinyDinoWithAFish March 30, 2022