oxymoron

C2+ Topic:Communication

US /ˌɑksiˈmɔrɑn/ UK /ˌɒksiˈmɔːrɒn/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

noun
a figure of speech combining contradictory terms

"Deafening silence" is a classic oxymoron beloved of poets.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a figure of speech... paradox contradiction incongruity antithesis

Opposites

tautologypleonasm

Word family

Derived forms oxymoronic

Related forms oxygen moron

Etymology

From Ancient Greek oxymōron, a self-illustrating compound of oxys ('sharp, clever') and mōros ('dull, foolish'); the word is itself an oxymoron meaning roughly 'pointedly foolish.'

oxýs Ancient Greek mōrós Ancient Greek

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Communication

External links

# oxymoron

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˌɑksiˈmɔrɑn/
**IPA (UK):** /ˌɒksiˈmɔːrɒn/

## Meanings
1. a figure of speech combining contradictory terms

## Examples
- "Deafening silence" is a classic oxymoron beloved of poets.

## Synonyms
- paradox
- contradiction
- incongruity
- antithesis

## Antonyms
- tautology
- pleonasm

## Derived Forms
- oxymoronic

## Related Forms
- oxygen
- moron

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: oxýs
- Root: mōrós

## Etymology
From Ancient Greek oxymōron, a self-illustrating compound of oxys ('sharp, clever') and mōros ('dull, foolish'); the word is itself an oxymoron meaning roughly 'pointedly foolish.'

## AI Etymology
Oxymoron is from Ancient Greek oxymōron, a self-illustrating compound of oxys ('sharp, clever') and mōros ('dull, foolish'); the word is itself an oxymoron meaning roughly 'pointedly foolish.'. Important recorded forms include oxýs (Ancient Greek) and mōrós (Ancient Greek). Morphologically, the ending or combining element turns the older base into the present English part of speech. The modern sense follows that older lexical line closely. In current use it covers a figure of speech combining contradictory terms. The wider family includes derived forms such as oxymoronic and related words such as oxygen and moron.

## Topics
- Communication

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