Autoantonym

Origin

- + antonym.

Coined or reported as autantonym by Joseph T. Shipley, 1960.

Shipley, Joseph T. Playing with Words. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1960, p. 74

Full definition of autoantonym

Noun

1. (rare) A word that has two opposing meanings.Left: a word that can mean "to have departed from" or "to have remained".Dust: means "to remove dust from" or "to spray or cover something with fine powder".Awful: means "terrible" or "magnificent".

Synonyms

• contranym, contronym