Mock Antonyms, Real Synonyms Quiz | Language Use

Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Let me give you an example so you can get an idea of what this quiz entails. If I asked what word is a mock antonym of overtake and a real synonym of commence the answer would be undertake because it gives the appearance of being an antonym without being one ('over'take/'under'take) and is a true synonym of commence. ----- Let's begin. What mock antonym of underlying has real synonyms fathoming or sympathizing? (Pick the answer that best satisfies both parts of the question.)

Answer: Understanding

Under'standing' is the best mock antonym of under'lying' (standing/lying) and a synonym for both fathoming and sympathizing. Underlying is an adjective and means to be situated beneath or to be a fundamental part of something, whereas understanding is a noun and means comprehension or enlightened intelligence. Although the meanings of underlying and understanding preclude them from being true antonyms, they can be related in the following manner - an underlying knowledge can lead to understanding.

Although under is part of both of these words, only in underlying does it hold its traditional meaning of beneath. In understanding, under most likely comes from a root that means among or in the midst of rather than beneath. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

2. Teddy Roosevelt said, "Speak softly and carry a big stick." If Teddy had wanted to change the look of what he said to appear the opposite but not really change the meaning, what mock antonym of softly and true synonym of barely or rarely would he use? (Pick the answer that best satisfies both parts of the question.)

Answer: Hardly

Here the mock antonyms are 'soft'ly and 'hard'ly because hard and soft are true antonyms and give the appearance of antonyms when made adverbs. In this context saying 'speak softly' and 'speak hardly' would be saying almost the same thing rather than the opposite and are more like true synonyms. Gingerly and lightly are not antonyms of softly but are true synonyms and have no relation to rarely or barely. Commonly would be closer to an antonym of hardly as it denotes frequency to the degree of being common whereas hardly denotes scarcity.

Hardly itself has undergone quite a transformation since its introduction around 1200 CE. At first it carried with it the definition most closely associated with its root word hard, namely "in a hard manner, with great exertion or effort". This would be more in line with being a true antonym of softly but still not completely. By 1540 it had transitioned into its more modern meaning of "barely, just". (Source: online etymology dictionary)

3. George S. Patton stated, "Battle is the most magnificent competition in which a human being can indulge. It brings out all that is best; it removes all that is base. All men are afraid in battle. The coward is the one who lets his fear overcome his sense of duty. Duty is the essence of manhood." What word is a double mock antonym of overcome, has endure or experience as its true synonyms, and is one word that could be used to sum up what Patton's quote describes?

Answer: Undergo

In this case undergo is a double mock antonym of overcome because both parts of the compound word are separately antonyms of the other parts of the other word - under is an antonym of over and go is an antonym of come. Experience and endure are not only true synonyms of undergo, but the first two definitions of the word according to dictionary.com - "1. to be subjected to; experience; pass through and 2. to endure; sustain; suffer." The idea of enduring as a definition can be traced back to around 1300, and the idea of experiencing or passing through can be traced back to the 1630s. Patton's quote basically says that by undergoing the trial of battle and overcoming his fears, a man proves himself to be a man.

4. Revelation 6:8 says, "I looked and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him." What mock antonym of pale might lead to one's death, and has true synonyms of pierce or stab?

Answer: Impale

In this case the mock antonym pair is pale/impale. The prefix im- has as one of its possible meanings to be translated as un-, hence the antonym appearance. Ashen is a synonym of pale and in this case both words denote a loss of color with one definition of ashen being extremely pale and thus it is a matter of degree between the words.

Although pale with the traditional meaning of lacking color (as an adjective) can be traced back as far as around 1300, it also developed the meaning of a fence of pointed stakes (as a noun) by the 1400s. This idea of a fence has survived in the phrase 'beyond the pale'. It is from this noun definition that impale came into being by the 1520s and its traditional meaning of piercing developed by 1610. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

5. Muhammad Ali said, "It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's the pebble in your shoe." Which mock antonym of ahead also has as genuine synonyms walking or hiking?

Answer: Afoot

Here the mock antonym afoot plays well with the quote because it literally means on foot and the only way you climb a mountain in this context is on foot. The two words are interesting in that afoot clearly applies to the noun foot/feet whereas ahead has nothing really to do with the noun head but rather with verb form of head and the idea of being in front of or at the head of.

This is one of the clearer examples of mock antonyms where the appearance of the words is more deceiving in the compound word than in their separate parts.

6. Of the four phrases below, which one is an idiomatic clich� that means absolve and recollect no more, that contains two mock antonyms, and is synonymous with the phrase 'let bygones be bygones'?

Answer: Forgive and forget

Forgive and forget is the only real clich�, the rest are phrases I made up. For'give' and for'get' are mock antonyms because give and get are real antonyms. The phrase 'forgive and forget' dates back to the 1300s and was a proverb by the 1500s. (Source: "The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms")

The phrase 'let bygones be bygones' actually is more involved than it would appear on the surface. At first bygone merely meant something in the past. As time went on however, it began to carry with it the idea of something unpleasant from the past. Thus the phrase is really saying, "let unpleasant things from the past be treated merely as the past," thus encompassing both meanings of the word. (Source: phrases.org.uk)

7. Rene Descartes philosophized, "I think therefore I am." What double mock antonym of therefore might Descartes use if he wanted to talk about the life to come that has true synonyms of eternity and henceforth?

Answer: Hereafter

Both parts of therefore and hereafter (there/here and fore/aft[er]) appear as antonyms of each other. Therefore is the newer of the two words having come into usage only since the 1800s while hereafter can be traced back to the mid 1400s. Originally hereafter only meant "after death" but by the beginning of the 1700s it had come to mean "a future world, the world to come". Today it applies both to the idea of the life to come after death and merely something that comes after something else in time.

The two synonyms, eternity and henceforth, play to both definitions hereafter now holds. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

8. Teddy Roosevelt asserted, "The only man who never makes a mistake is the man who never does anything." Albert Einstein concurred, "A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new." What mock antonym of mistake and true synonym of apprehension or foreboding would express the fears and doubts that Teddy and Albert seemed to lack in these quotes?

Answer: Misgiving (Misgive)

Misgive is the verb form of the word and the mock antonym of mistake (mis'give'/mis'take'). Misgiving is the noun form and is usually but not exclusively used in its plural form, misgivings. Both forms of the word denote doubt and apprehension at their core. Misgive can be traced back to around 1510 and misgiving came about as a noun approximately 100 years later. When broken down, misgive has two parts: mis- meaning 'incorrect' or 'wrong' and give in its sense of 'suggest' rather than 'impart', basically an incorrect or wrong suggestion. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

Although both quotes seem to imply no fear or doubt, both men demonstrated in their lives not a lack of doubt or fear but rather acting in spite of it. Case in point would be Einstein's quote, "Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex... It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." Or Roosevelt's statement, "It is only through labor and painful effort, by grim energy and resolute courage, that we move on to better things." It would be a mistake to assume these men never had any misgivings.

9. The eminent architect Frank Lloyd Wright stated, "Noble life demands a noble architecture for noble uses of noble men. Lack of culture means what it has always meant: ignoble civilization and therefore imminent downfall." What double mock antonym of downfall might Wright have used to describe what happens during the downfall of a government? The noun form of this word has true synonyms of revolution and upheaval.

Answer: Uprising (Uprise)

Uprise (uprising) is a double mock antonym for downfall (up/down and rise/fall). This is another case of a perfect double mock antonym because both pairs are true antonyms of each other. Uprising is a synonym of revolution and upheaval. The downfall of many governments happens as a result of an uprising. Uprise can be traced back to the 1300s with uprising meaning merely the 'action of rising from bed or from the grave'.

Its meaning of 'insurrection or popular revolt' did not come about until the 1580s.

Interestingly, downfall (dating from around 1300) is a noun that is made from combining the adverb down and the verb fall. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

10. Our last pair of words are synonyms for expensive and synonyms of each other even though they appear as if they should be antonyms. Which pair of mock antonyms best fits this description?

Answer: Valuable, invaluable

Valuable and invaluable are the only two that fit the question. Looking at the words one would think the prefix in- would mean the 'opposite of' or 'not', hence not valuable. In fact this connotation of invaluable can be traced back as far as the 1630s but no longer applies to the word.

Its more common meaning of being "above value" goes back even further to the 1570s. The root word value goes back to the 1300s and the addition of able to form valuable goes back to the 1580s. It would appear then that invaluable came about before valuable but this cannot be ascertained conclusively. What can be stated is that the words came into being about the same time with the same definition in mind. According to the definitions from dictionary.com, the difference between the words is one of degree rather than meaning. Valuable is defined as "having considerable monetary worth" whereas invaluable is defined as "beyond calculable or appraisable value".

Therefore invaluable is to a greater degree than valuable. Again the prefix that should mean 'not' (in-) actually adds to the meaning and becomes 'more', an apparent antonym of not. (Source: online etymology dictionary)

Source: Author tazman6619

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor looney_tunes before going online.
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Mock Antonyms, Real Synonyms Trivia Quiz

Mock antonyms are pairs of words that appear to be antonyms but in reality are not. I will give you a mock antonym and a real synonym for a word and you must pick the word that fits with both.

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