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VOCABULARY LEVEL 1 – Package 6 - Antonyms

Learning Outcomes

By the end of VOCABULARY LEVEL 1 you should be able to
✔ study vocabulary independently
✔ use different strategies to expand and record vocabulary

Introduction to Independent Learning

Independent learning gives you more choice about what, when and how fast to study. It also prepares you to learn after complete full time education.

In order to study independently you need to be able to set your own aims, choose how you want to study and reflect on the usefulness of studying that you do and on your overall progress.

Since you have chosen to study VOCABULARY LEVEL 1, we can assume that you want to learn more about how to expand and remember words more effectively. The online activities are designed to help you to develop and build the bank of words and expressions that you have at your disposal.

To begin with, there is a vocabulary quiz which will give you some idea of where you strengths and weaknesses lie.

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Package 6 - Antonyms

Antonyms

 

Knowing the antonym(s) of a word helps you understand and remember the word itself. In certain cases, the meaning of the word is specified by its antonym.

Activity 1

Prefixes with negative meanings

After discussing roots and affixes earlier, you know that prefixes are often used to give words a negative meaning. The opposite of convenient, for example, is inconvenient, the opposite of agree is disagree and the opposite of lock is unlock. Unfortunately, there is no easy way of knowing which prefix a word will employ to form its opposite. When you learn a new word, note down whether it has an opposite formed with a prefix and, if so, what it is. Note, however, that the words formed in this way are not always exact opposites and may have a slightly different meaning.

The following is a list of prefixes which are useful in helping you to understand and record words. Pay attention to the fact that some of these words are not antonyms.

  Prefixes   Meaning   Examples
a not, without amoral  atypically 
anti against, opposed to anti-war  antisocial  antibiotic
mal bad, badly malnutrition  maltreat  malfunction
counter against counteract  countercurrent  counteragent
pseudo false pseudo-scientific  pseudo-intellectual
in
im
il
ir
not inefficient  ineffective  inconsistent
impossible  immature  impatient
illegal  illegible  illiterate
irregular  irresponsible  irreversible
de to remove, to make less decentralise  demotivate demoralise
mis bad, badly misbehave  miscalculation  misunderstand
non not nonsense  nonstick  nonsmoker
un not unfair   undress  unblock
under too little undercooked  understated 

Activity 2

Complete the sentences by dragging the words below and dropping them in the correct gap in the sentences.

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