Basic English (or Simple English) was created by Charles Kay Ogden and presented in his book Basic English: A General Introduction with Rules and Grammar (1930). It is a simplified subset of English that is commonly used as an aid for teaching English as a Second Language (ESL). Ogden’s Basic English 850-word list is often used as a beginner’s vocabulary for English language classes.
The following list is the section of 50 opposites. No official answers are given for the ‘official’ opposites, and some words such as “blue” and “dear” have very different opposites depending on the context. A list of possible answers, using words from the Basic English word list offers some suggestions, and of course this can be a lesson in itself for English language teachers and students – 50 Opposites Answers.
| awake | |
| bad | |
| bent | |
| bitter | |
| blue | |
| certain | |
| cold | |
| complete | |
| cruel | |
| dark | |
| dead | |
| dear | |
| delicate | |
| different | |
| dirty | |
| dry | |
| false | |
| feeble | |
| female | |
| foolish | |
| future | |
| green | |
| ill | |
| last | |
| late | |
| left | |
| loose | |
| loud | |
| low | |
| mixed | |
| narrow | |
| old | |
| opposite | |
| public | |
| rough | |
| sad | |
| safe | |
| secret | |
| short | |
| shut | |
| simple | |
| slow | |
| small | |
| soft | |
| solid | |
| special | |
| strange | |
| thin | |
| white | |
| wrong |
References
- Basic English (Wikipedia)
- Basic English word list (Wiktionary)
Downloads
- 50 Opposites (Word Document – ESL Printable)
- 50 Opposites Answers (Word Document – ESL Printable)
very helpful lists. The kids love them