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Auto-Antonyms

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Cleave, dust, and are all words that can mean the opposite of themselves. You can cleave to a belief, meaning to “adhere closely,” but you can also separate by cleaving them. Words that mean the opposite of themselves go by many different names, including contranyms, contronyms, auto-antonyms, and Janus words. Lists from an MIT teacher, Polysemania Blog, and this on English Word Information. talks about enantiodromia, which is “the process by which becomes its opposite,” particularly when an individual or community adopts beliefs antithetical to beliefs they held earlier. This is part of a complete episode.

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