antithesis

American  

[an-tith-uh-sis] / ænˈtɪθ ə sɪs /

noun

plural

antitheses

1. opposition; contrast.

   the antithesis of right and wrong.

2. the direct opposite (usually followed by of orto ).

   Her behavior was the very antithesis of cowardly.

   Synonyms:

   reverse, opposite

3. Rhetoric.

   1. the placing of a sentence or one of its parts against another to which it is opposed to form a balanced contrast of ideas, as in “Give me liberty or give me death.”

   2. the second sentence or part thus set in opposition, as “or give me death.”

4. Philosophy. Hegelian dialectic

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antithesis British  

/ ænˈtɪθɪsɪs /

noun

1. the exact opposite

2. contrast or opposition

3. rhetoric the juxtaposition of contrasting ideas, phrases, or words so as to produce an effect of balance, such as my words fly up, my thoughts remain below

4. philosophy the second stage in the Hegelian dialectic contradicting the thesis before resolution by the synthesis

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Other Word Forms

• self-antithesis
  noun

Etymology

Origin of antithesis

First recorded in 1520–30; from Latin, from Greek: “opposition,” from anti(ti)thé(nai) “to oppose” + -sis -sis; equivalent to anti- + thesis

Explanation

An antithesis is the complete opposite of something. Though the counterculture was strong in America in 1968, voters elected Richard Nixon, the antithesis of a hippie. The noun antithesis comes from a Greek root meaning "opposition" and "set against." It's often used today when describing two ideas or terms that are placed in strong contrast to each other. We might come across antithesis in school if we learn about the "Hegelian dialectic." There, the thesis, or main idea put forward in an argument, is countered with its opposite idea — the antithesis — and the two are finally reconciled in a third proposition, the synthesis. An antithesis wouldn't exist without a thesis because it works as a comparison.

Example Sentences

Among the artworks returned is a piece titled I Love Antithesis, valued at $2.75m, and Standing Woman that was previously on display at the MoMA, valued at $1.5m.

From BBC • Sep. 20, 2023

Antithesis reaches its climax in the metaphor of the eighth line: "I was love's cradle once, now love's grave right."

From The Guardian • May 20, 2013

Antithesis of the late hated Chain Publisher Frank Munsey, Frank Gannett gives his editors a free hand, signs his name to anything he asks them to publish in conflict with the papers' policies.

From Time Magazine Archive

Antithesis may be the blossom of wit, but it will never arrive at maturity unless sound sense be the trunk, and truth the root.—Colton.

From Pearls of Thought by Ballou, Maturin Murray

Footnote 101: That is, putting development into a formula— Thesis ↧ Antithesis Synthesis.

From Autobiography of Friedrich Froebel translated and annotated by Emilie Michaelis ... and H. Keatley Moore. by Michaelis, Emilie