English Synonyms and Antonyms — Amend to Answer

advance, correct, meliorate, rectify, ameliorate, emend, mend, reform, better, improve, mitigate, repair.

cleanse, make better, purify, To _amend_ is to change for the better by removing faults, errors, or defects, and always refers to that which at some point falls short of a standard of excellence.

_Advance_, _better_, and _improve_ may refer either to what is quite imperfect or to what has reached a high degree of excellence; we _advance_ the kingdom of God, _improve_ the minds of our children, _better_ the morals of the people.

But for matters below the point of ordinary approval we seldom use these words; we do not speak of _bettering_ a wretched alley, or _improving_ a foul sewer.

There we use _cleanse_, _purify_, or similar words.

We _correct_ evils, _reform_ abuses, _rectify_ incidental conditions of evil or error; we _ameliorate_ poverty and misery, which we can not wholly remove.

We _mend_ a tool, _repair_ a building, _correct_ proof; we _amend_ character or conduct that is faulty, or a statement or law that is defective.

A text, writing, or statement is _amended_ by the author or by some adequate authority; it is often _emended_ by conjecture.

A

motion is _amended_ by the mover or by the assembly; a constitution is _amended_ by the people; an ancient text is _emended_ by a critic who believes that what seems to him the better reading is what the author wrote.

Compare ALLEVIATE.

Antonyms: aggravate, debase, harm, mar, tarnish, blemish, depress, impair, spoil, vitiate.

corrupt, deteriorate, injure, * * * * * AMIABLE.

Synonyms: agreeable, engaging, lovable, pleasing, attractive, gentle, lovely, sweet, benignant, good-natured, loving, winning, harming, kind, pleasant, winsome.

_Amiable_ combines the senses of _lovable_ or _lovely_ and _loving_; the _amiable_ character has ready affection and kindliness for others, with the qualities that are adapted to win their love; _amiable_ is a higher and stronger word than _good-natured_ or _agreeable_.

_Lovely_ is often applied to externals; as, a _lovely_ face.

_Amiable_ denotes a disposition desirous to cheer, please, and make happy.

A selfish man of the world may have the art to be _agreeable_; a handsome, brilliant, and witty person may be _charming_ or even _attractive_, while by no means _amiable_.

The _engaging_, _winning_, and _winsome_ add to amiability something of beauty, accomplishments, and grace.

The _benignant_ are calmly kind, as from a height and a distance.

_Kind_, _good-natured_ people may be coarse and rude, and so fail to be _agreeable_ or _pleasing_; the really _amiable_ are likely to avoid such faults by their earnest desire to please.

The _good-natured_ have an easy disposition to get along comfortably with every one in all circumstances.

A _sweet_ disposition is very sure to be _amiable_, the _loving_ heart bringing out all that is _lovable_ and _lovely_ in character.

Antonyms: acrimonious, crusty, hateful, ill-tempered, surly, churlish, disagreeable, ill-conditioned, morose, unamiable, crabbed, dogged, ill-humored, sour, unlovely, cruel, gruff, ill-natured, sullen, * * * * * AMID.

Synonyms: amidst, amongst, betwixt, mingled with, among, between, in the midst of, surrounded by.

_Amid_ or _amidst_ denotes _surrounded by_; _among_ or _amongst_ denotes _mingled with_.

_Between_ (archaic or poetic, _betwixt_) is said of two persons or objects, or of two groups of persons or objects.

"Let there be no strife, I pray thee, _between_ me and thee, and _between_ my herdmen and thy herdmen," _Gen.

_ xiii, 9; the reference being to two bodies of herdmen.

_Amid_ denotes mere position; _among_, some active relation, as of companionship, hostility, etc. Lowell's "_Among_ my Books" regards the books as companions; _amid_ my books would suggest packing, storing, or some other incidental circumstance.

We say _among_ friends, or _among_ enemies, _amidst_ the woods, _amid_ the shadows.

_In the midst of_ may have merely the local meaning; as, I found myself _in the midst of_ a crowd; or it may express even closer association than _among_; as, "I found myself _in the midst of_ friends" suggests their pressing up on every side, oneself the central object; so, "where two or three are met together in my name, there am I _in the midst of_ them," _Matt.

_ xviii, 20; in which case it would be feebler to say "_among_ them," impossible to say "_amid_ them," not so well to say "_amidst_ them."

Antonyms: afar from, away from, beyond, far from, outside, without.

* * * * * AMPLIFY.

Synonyms: augment, dilate, expand, extend, unfold, develop, enlarge, expatiate, increase, widen.

_Amplify_ is now rarely used in the sense of _increase_, to add material substance, bulk, volume, or the like; it is now almost wholly applied to discourse or writing, signifying to make fuller in statement, whether with or without adding matter of importance, as by stating fully what was before only implied, or by adding illustrations to make the meaning more readily apprehended, etc. The chief difficulty of very young writers is to _amplify_, to get beyond the bare curt statement by _developing_, _expanding_, _unfolding_ the thought.

The chief difficulty of those who have more material and experience is to condense sufficiently.

So, in the early days of our literature _amplify_ was used in the favorable sense; but at present this word and most kindred words are coming to share the derogatory meaning that has long attached to _expatiate_.

We may _develop_ a thought, _expand_ an illustration, _extend_ a discussion, _expatiate_ on a hobby, _dilate_ on something joyous or sad, _enlarge_ a volume, _unfold_ a scheme, _widen_ the range of treatment.

Antonyms: abbreviate, amputate, condense, cut down, reduce, summarize, abridge, "boil down," curtail, epitomize, retrench, sum up.

Prepositions: To amplify _on_ or _upon_ the subject is needless.

Amplify this matter _by_ illustrations.

* * * * * ANALOGY.

Synonyms: affinity, likeness, relation, similarity, coincidence, parity, resemblance, simile, comparison, proportion, semblance, similitude.

_Analogy_ is specifically a _resemblance_ of relations; a _resemblance_ that may be reasoned from, so that from the _likeness_ in certain respects we may infer that other and perhaps deeper relations exist.

_Affinity_ is a mutual attraction with or without seeming likeness; as, the _affinity_ of iron for oxygen.

_Coincidence_ is complete agreement in some one or more respects; there may be a _coincidence_ in time of most dissimilar events.

_Parity_ of reasoning is said of an argument equally conclusive on subjects not strictly analogous.

_Similitude_ is a rhetorical comparison of one thing to another with which it has some points in common.

_Resemblance_ and _similarity_ are external or superficial, and may involve no deeper relation; as, the _resemblance_ of a cloud to a distant mountain.

Compare ALLEGORY.

Antonyms: disagreement, disproportion, dissimilarity, incongruity, unlikeness.

Prepositions: The analogy _between_ (or _of_) nature and revelation; the analogy _of_ sound _to_ light; a family has some analogy _with_ (or _to_) a state.

* * * * * ANGER.

Synonyms: animosity, fury, offense, rage, choler, impatience, passion, resentment, displeasure, indignation, peevishness, temper, exasperation, ire, pettishness, vexation, fretfulness, irritation, petulance, wrath.

_Displeasure_ is the mildest and most general word.

_Choler_ and _ire_, now rare except in poetic or highly rhetorical language, denote a still, and the latter a persistent, _anger_.

_Temper_ used alone in the sense of _anger_ is colloquial, tho we may correctly say a hot _temper_, a fiery _temper_, etc. _Passion_, tho a word of far wider application, may, in the singular, be employed to denote _anger_; "did put me in a towering _passion_," SHAKESPEARE _Hamlet_ act v, sc.

2. _Anger_ is violent and vindictive emotion, which is sharp, sudden, and, like all violent passions, necessarily brief.

_Resentment_ (a feeling back or feeling over again) is persistent, the bitter brooding over injuries.

_Exasperation_, a roughening, is a hot, superficial intensity of _anger_, demanding instant expression.

_Rage_ drives one beyond the bounds of prudence or discretion; _fury_ is stronger yet, and sweeps one away into uncontrollable violence.

_Anger_ is personal and usually selfish, aroused by real or supposed wrong to oneself, and directed specifically and intensely against the person who is viewed as blameworthy.

_Indignation_ is impersonal and unselfish _displeasure_ at unworthy acts (L. _indigna_), _i.

e. _, at wrong as wrong.

Pure _indignation_ is not followed by regret, and needs no repentance; it is also more self-controlled than _anger_.

_Anger_ is commonly a sin;

_indignation_ is often a duty.

_Wrath_ is deep and perhaps vengeful _displeasure_, as when the people of Nazareth were "filled with _wrath_" at the plain words of Jesus (_Luke_ iv, 28); it may, however, simply express the culmination of righteous _indignation_ without malice in a pure being; as, the _wrath_ of God.

_Impatience_, _fretfulness_, _irritation_, _peevishness_, _pettishness_, _petulance_, and _vexation_ express the slighter forms of anger.

_Irritation_, _petulance_, and _vexation_ are temporary and for immediate cause.

_Fretfulness_, _pettishness_, and _peevishness_ are chronic states finding in any petty matter an occasion for their exercise.

Compare ACRIMONY; ENMITY; HATRED.

Antonyms: amiability, leniency, mildness, peacefulness, charity, lenity, patience, self-control, forbearance, long-suffering, peace, self-restraint.

gentleness, love, peaceableness, Prepositions: Anger _at_ the insult prompted the reply.

Anger _toward_ the offender exaggerates the offense.

* * * * * ANIMAL.

Synonyms: beast, fauna, living organism, sentient being.

brute, living creature, An _animal_ is a _sentient being_, distinct from inanimate matter and from vegetable life on the one side and from mental and spiritual existence on the other.

Thus man is properly classified as an _animal_.

But because the animal life is the lowest and rudest part of his being and that which he shares with inferior _creatures_, to call any individual man an _animal_ is to imply that the animal nature has undue supremacy, and so is deep condemnation or utter insult.

The _brute_ is the _animal_ viewed as dull to all finer feeling; the _beast_ is looked upon as a being of appetites.

To call a man a _brute_ is to imply that he is unfeeling and cruel; to call him a _beast_ is to indicate that he is vilely sensual.

We speak of the cruel father as a _brute_ to his children; of the drunkard as making a _beast_ of himself.

So firmly are these figurative senses established that we now incline to avoid applying _brute_ or _beast_ to any creature, as a horse or dog, for which we have any affection; we prefer in such cases the word _animal_.

_Creature_ is a word of wide signification, including all the things that God has created, whether inanimate objects, plants, animals, angels, or men.

The _animals_ of a region are collectively called its _fauna_.

Antonyms: angel, man, mind, soul, substance (material), inanimate object, matter, mineral, spirit, vegetable.

* * * * * ANNOUNCE.

Synonyms: advertise, give notice (of), proclaim, reveal, circulate, give out, promulgate, say, communicate, herald, propound, spread abroad, declare, make known, publish, state, enunciate, notify, report, tell.

To _announce_ is to give intelligence of in some formal or public way.

We may _announce_ that which has occurred or that which is to occur, tho the word is chiefly used in the anticipative sense; we _announce_ a book when it is in press, a guest when he arrives.

We _advertise_ our business, _communicate_ our intentions, _enunciate_ our views; we _notify_ an individual, _give notice_ to the public.

_Declare_ has often an authoritative force; to _declare_ war is to cause war to be, where before there may have been only hostilities; we say _declare_ war, _proclaim_ peace.

We _propound_ a question or an argument, _promulgate_ the views of a sect or party, or the decision of a court, etc. We _report_ an interview, _reveal_ a secret, _herald_ the coming of some distinguished person or great event.

_Publish_, in popular usage, is becoming closely restricted to the sense of issuing through the press;

we _announce_ a book that is to be _published_.

Antonyms: bury, cover (up), hush, keep secret, suppress, conceal, hide, keep back, secrete, withhold.

Prepositions: The event was announced _to_ the family _by_ telegraph.

* * * * * ANSWER.

Synonyms: rejoinder, repartee, reply, response, retort.

A verbal _answer_ is a return of words to something that seems to call for them, and is made to a charge as well as to a question; an _answer_ may be even made to an unspoken implication or manifestation; see _Luke_ v, 22. In a wider sense, anything said or done in return for some word, action, or suggestion of another may be called an _answer_.

The blow of an enraged man, the whinny of a horse, the howling of the wind, the movement of a bolt in a lock, an echo, etc. , may each be an _answer_ to some word or movement.

A _reply_ is an unfolding, and ordinarily implies thought and intelligence.

A _rejoinder_ is strictly an _answer_ to a _reply_, tho often used in the general sense of _answer_, but always with the implication of something more or less controversial or opposed, tho lacking the conclusiveness implied in _answer_; an _answer_, in the full sense, to a charge, an argument, or an objection is adequate, and finally refutes and disposes of it; a _reply_ or _rejoinder_ may be quite inadequate, so that one may say, "This _reply_ is not an _answer_;" "I am ready with an _answer_" means far more than "I am ready with a _reply_."

A _response_ is accordant or harmonious, designed or adapted to carry on the thought of the words that called it forth, as the _responses_ in a liturgical service, or to meet the wish of him who seeks it; as, the appeal for aid met a prompt and hearty _response_.

_Repartee_ is a prompt, witty, and commonly good-natured _answer_ to some argument or attack; a _retort_ may also be witty, but is severe and may be even savage in its intensity.

Prepositions: An answer _in_ writing, or _by_ word of mouth, _to_ the question.

* * * * * ANTICIPATE.

Synonyms: