Inside Story

The contronym conundrum

Inside Language | A surprising number of English words have completely different meanings in different contexts. Linguist Kate Burridge discusses why with Peter Clarke

Kate Burridge & Peter Clarke 28 March 2016 49 words


English is peppered with contronyms – those words that mean one thing in one context, and the opposite in another. Where do they come from and what do they signify, asks linguist Kate Burridge in this conversation with Peter Clarke.

Duration: 9 minutes 22 seconds

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