Antonyms — High-Frequency Word List Set 3 (M–R)

Antonyms Set 3: Words Beginning with M to R

The M-to-R band of the alphabet supplies some of the most frequently repeated antonym pairs in SSC and RRB papers — words like Obstinate/Flexible, Optimistic/Pessimistic and Rigid/Flexible turn up almost every year in some form. This chapter arranges sixty-three such words by theme so you can revise them as connected groups rather than a flat list.

Size, Scale and Value

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Magnify	Verb	To make something appear larger than it is; to enlarge	Minimize	The lens can magnify an object up to fifty times its size.
Meager	Adjective	Lacking in quantity or quality; scanty	Abundant	The clerk survived on a meager salary for years before his promotion.
Opulent	Adjective	Ostentatiously rich and luxurious	Impoverished	The palace's opulent interiors attract thousands of tourists every year.
Petty	Adjective	Of little importance; trivial	Significant	The two neighbours quarrelled over a petty matter of parking space.
Prosperous	Adjective	Successful in material terms; flourishing financially	Impoverished	Trade along the river made the town prosperous within a decade.
Obese	Adjective	Grossly overweight or overfat	Lean	Doctors have linked processed food to rising obese populations in cities.

Honesty, Belief and Doubt

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Malicious	Adjective	Intending to do harm; spiteful	Benevolent	Someone had posted malicious rumours about the candidate online.
Mystify	Verb	To confuse or puzzle someone completely	Clarify	The sudden change in policy managed to mystify even senior officials.
Obscure	Adjective	Not well known, or not clearly expressed	Prominent	The theory remained obscure until a later scholar revived interest in it.
Optimistic	Adjective	Hopeful and confident about the future	Pessimistic	Despite the setback, the coach stayed optimistic about the team's chances.
Plausible	Adjective	Seeming reasonable or probable	Implausible	The suspect offered a plausible explanation for his whereabouts.
Rational	Adjective	Based on reason or logic rather than emotion	Irrational	A rational approach to the budget helped the department cut waste.
Pertinent	Adjective	Relevant or applicable to a particular matter	Irrelevant	The lawyer asked several pertinent questions during cross-examination.

Character and Behaviour

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Naive	Adjective	Showing a lack of experience or judgment	Sophisticated	It was naive of him to trust a stranger with the entire deposit.
Notorious	Adjective	Famous or well known, typically for something bad	Reputable	The gang was notorious for a string of robberies in the district.
Obedient	Adjective	Willing to comply with orders or requests	Defiant	The trained dog remained obedient even amid the noisy crowd.
Obstinate	Adjective	Stubbornly refusing to change one's opinion or course	Flexible	He remained obstinate about the old method despite better alternatives available.
Passive	Adjective	Accepting what happens without active response or resistance	Active	Employees can no longer be passive observers of workplace safety.
Pompous	Adjective	Excessively self-important in manner or speech	Modest	The pompous chairman insisted on being addressed by his full title.
Prodigal	Adjective	Wastefully extravagant, especially with money	Thrifty	The prodigal heir squandered the family fortune within a few years.
Prudent	Adjective	Acting with care and thought for the future	Rash	A prudent investor rarely puts all savings into one scheme.
Querulous	Adjective	Complaining in a peevish or whining way	Content	The querulous tenant called the landlord about every minor issue.
Rebellious	Adjective	Resisting authority or control; defiant	Obedient	The rebellious teenager refused to follow the school's dress code.
Reckless	Adjective	Acting without thinking about the consequences of an action	Cautious	Reckless driving on the highway led to a sharp rise in accidents.
Reticent	Adjective	Reluctant to reveal thoughts or feelings; reserved in speech	Talkative	He remained reticent about the reasons behind his sudden resignation.
Ruthless	Adjective	Having no pity or compassion for others	Merciful	The company's ruthless cost-cutting led to hundreds of layoffs.
Modest	Adjective	Unassuming in the estimation of one's own abilities or achievements	Ostentatious	He remained modest about his achievements even after winning the national award.
Morose	Adjective	Sullen and ill-tempered	Cheerful	He had been morose ever since the results were declared.
Negligent	Adjective	Failing to take proper care over something	Careful	The contractor was found negligent in following the safety norms.
Servile	Adjective	Excessively willing to serve or please others; submissive	Domineering	His servile manner around senior officers annoyed the rest of the staff.

Manners, Refinement and Politeness

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Refined	Adjective	Elegant and cultured in taste or manner	Crude	Her refined manners set her apart at the diplomatic dinner.
Rude	Adjective	Offensively impolite or ill-mannered	Courteous	The receptionist's rude reply led to a formal complaint.
Rough	Adjective	Not smooth or level; harsh to the touch	Smooth	The road turned rough as soon as they left the highway.
Meddle	Verb	To interfere in something that is not one's concern	Ignore	Her mother-in-law would often meddle in the young couple's decisions.

Speed, Effort and Energy

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Meticulous	Adjective	Showing great attention to detail; very careful	Careless	The auditor's meticulous review uncovered several small errors in the accounts.
Nimble	Adjective	Quick and light in movement or action	Clumsy	The goalkeeper's nimble reflexes saved the match in the final minute.
Perpetual	Adjective	Never ending or changing; constant	Temporary	The factory's perpetual noise became a nuisance for nearby residents.
Precede	Verb	To come before something in time or order	Follow	A short introduction will precede the main address by the guest speaker.
Punctual	Adjective	Arriving or acting exactly at the appointed time	Tardy	He is known for being punctual even on the busiest days.
Resilient	Adjective	Able to recover quickly from difficulties	Fragile	The economy proved resilient despite two consecutive years of drought.
Rigid	Adjective	Not able to bend or be forced out of shape; inflexible	Flexible	The old rules were too rigid to accommodate the new work-from-home policy.
Robust	Adjective	Strong and healthy; vigorous	Frail	The bridge was built with a robust steel frame to survive floods.
Persistent	Adjective	Continuing firmly in spite of difficulty or opposition	Faltering	Her persistent efforts finally convinced the board to fund the project.
Relentless	Adjective	Unstoppably intense or continuous in effort or pace	Sporadic	The relentless heat wave stretched on for nearly three weeks.

Time, Place and Nature

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Mundane	Adjective	Lacking interest or excitement; ordinary	Extraordinary	He described office life as mundane compared to his years in the army.
Nocturnal	Adjective	Active mainly at night	Diurnal	Owls are nocturnal birds that hunt after sunset.
Novice	Noun	A person new to and inexperienced in a field or activity	Expert	As a novice trader, he lost money before learning to read the market.
Ordinary	Adjective	With no special or distinctive features; normal	Extraordinary	It was an ordinary Monday until the news of the merger broke.
Orthodox	Adjective	Following traditional or accepted beliefs and practices	Unorthodox	The scholar's orthodox interpretation of the text drew little debate.
Placid	Adjective	Not easily upset or excited; calm	Turbulent	The lake stayed placid even as clouds gathered over the hills.
Quaint	Adjective	Attractively unusual or old-fashioned	Modern	Tourists love the quaint cottages that line the hill town's main street.
Reserved	Adjective	Slow to reveal emotion or opinions; reticent	Outgoing	He seemed reserved at first but opened up after a few meetings.
Rural	Adjective	Relating to the countryside rather than a town or city	Urban	Internet access has improved significantly in rural areas over the past decade.
Mellow	Adjective	Softened, pleasant and mature, often with age	Harsh	The old wine had turned mellow after years in the cellar.
Perilous	Adjective	Full of danger or risk	Safe	The mountain pass becomes perilous once the first snow falls.

Verbs of Action and Change

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Merge	Verb	To combine or blend two or more things into one	Separate	The two banks decided to merge their operations after the regulatory approval.
Nourish	Verb	To provide with the food or other substances necessary for growth	Starve	A balanced diet is needed to nourish a growing child properly.
Provoke	Verb	To stimulate or incite someone into a reaction, often anger	Pacify	His remark was clearly meant to provoke the opposing team.
Quell	Verb	To put an end to a rebellion, unrest or disturbance	Incite	Additional forces were sent in to quell the unrest in the market area.
Quench	Verb	To satisfy thirst, or to put out a fire	Ignite	A glass of cold water was enough to quench his thirst after the run.
Reproach	Verb	To express disapproval of or disappointment with someone	Praise	The coach chose to reproach the player privately rather than in public.
Radiant	Adjective	Sending out light; glowing with joy, health or love	Gloomy	The bride looked radiant as she walked down the aisle.
Menace	Noun	A person or thing that is likely to cause harm; a threat	Boon	Stray dogs have become a menace in this part of the city.

A useful revision habit: read each row aloud as a full opposite pair — "Obstinate means stubborn, opposite of Flexible" — instead of memorising the word list vertically. Exam questions almost always present the headword in a sentence, so practising the pair in context trains you for the actual format you will face. Note also that a word like Rigid and a word like Obstinate can both take Flexible as their antonym without being duplicate entries — Rigid describes an unbending object or rule, while Obstinate describes an unbending person's attitude.

Quick Test Yourself

1. Choose the antonym of OPTIMISTIC: (a) Hopeful (b) Confident (c) Pessimistic (d) Cheerful
2. Choose the antonym of OBSTINATE: (a) Stubborn (b) Flexible (c) Firm (d) Fixed
3. Choose the antonym of MALICIOUS: (a) Spiteful (b) Benevolent (c) Harmful (d) Cruel
4. Choose the antonym of PRUDENT: (a) Careful (b) Wise (c) Rash (d) Sensible
5. Choose the antonym of RETICENT: (a) Quiet (b) Talkative (c) Shy (d) Reserved
6. Choose the antonym of RIGID: (a) Stiff (b) Firm (c) Flexible (d) Hard
7. Choose the antonym of NOTORIOUS: (a) Famous (b) Reputable (c) Infamous (d) Known
8. Fill in the blank with the antonym of "rural": After the factories arrived, the once-quiet village grew increasingly _______.
9. Choose the antonym of PUNCTUAL: (a) Prompt (b) Tardy (c) Timely (d) Early
10. Choose the antonym of RUTHLESS: (a) Cruel (b) Harsh (c) Merciful (d) Severe

Answers: 1. (c) Pessimistic   2. (b) Flexible   3. (b) Benevolent   4. (c) Rash   5. (b) Talkative   6. (c) Flexible   7. (b) Reputable   8. Urban   9. (b) Tardy   10. (c) Merciful

Additional High-Frequency Words (M–R)

Word	Part of Speech	Meaning	Antonym	Example Sentence
Malign	Adjective	Evil in nature or intent; harmful in effect	Benign	The report warned of the malign influence of unchecked misinformation.
Mammoth	Adjective	Huge in size, extent or degree	Tiny	Rebuilding the flood-hit highway was a mammoth task for the engineers.
Manifest	Adjective	Clear or obvious to the eye or mind	Obscure	His disappointment was manifest in every word of the speech.
Meek	Adjective	Quiet, gentle and submissive by nature	Assertive	The once meek clerk surprised everyone by challenging the decision openly.
Nebulous	Adjective	Vague, unclear or ill-defined	Definite	The proposal remained nebulous until the committee drafted specific clauses.
Odious	Adjective	Extremely unpleasant or repulsive; hateful	Delightful	The tenant's odious behaviour finally forced the landlord to act.
Paltry	Adjective	Small or meagre in amount; insignificant	Considerable	Workers protested against the paltry wage hike offered by the company.
Peculiar	Adjective	Strange or odd; unusual	Normal	There was something peculiar about the way he avoided the question.
Plentiful	Adjective	Existing or available in large quantities	Scarce	Fish were plentiful in the river before the dam was constructed.
Pristine	Adjective	In its original, unspoiled condition; extremely clean	Corrupted	The expedition reached a pristine stretch of forest untouched by logging.
Prolific	Adjective	Producing much output, fruit or work in abundance	Unproductive	The prolific author published nearly thirty novels over her career.
Ponderous	Adjective	Slow, clumsy and heavy in movement or manner; dull	Nimble	The ponderous old truck struggled to climb the steep hill road.
Rampant	Adjective	Flourishing or spreading unchecked	Controlled	Corruption was rampant in the department before the new inquiry began.
Repel	Verb	To drive back an attack, or to cause a feeling of distaste	Attract	The soldiers managed to repel the ambush without a single casualty.
Ridicule	Verb	To make fun of someone or something in a mocking way	Praise	His unusual accent became a target for ridicule among classmates.

Words like Manifest and Nebulous both touch on clarity but sit on opposite sides of the same idea — one is unmistakably visible, the other is impossible to pin down. Keep the two straight by remembering that Manifest relates to "manifesto," a document made openly public.

Bonus Round: Test Yourself on the Extended List

1. Choose the antonym of PLENTIFUL: (a) Abundant (b) Scarce (c) Ample (d) Rich
2. Choose the antonym of RAMPANT: (a) Widespread (b) Controlled (c) Unchecked (d) Spreading
3. Choose the antonym of MANIFEST: (a) Clear (b) Visible (c) Obscure (d) Plain
4. Choose the antonym of PROLIFIC: (a) Productive (b) Fruitful (c) Unproductive (d) Abundant
5. Fill in the blank with the antonym of "odious": Guests found the newly renovated lobby quite _______ to sit in.

Answers: 1. (b) Scarce   2. (b) Controlled   3. (c) Obscure   4. (c) Unproductive   5. Delightful

Before moving to the next chapter, run through the full word list once more and say each antonym pair out loud without looking at the table — Magnify/Minimize, Malicious/Benevolent, Obstinate/Flexible, and so on down to Ridicule/Praise. This kind of active recall, rather than passive re-reading, is what actually moves these sixty-three words from short-term to long-term memory before exam day. Notice, too, how many M-to-R words describe a person's dealings with others — Ruthless, Servile, Meddle, Reproach — since character-based antonyms make up a large share of this alphabet band in past papers.

Finally, remember that antonym questions in the actual exam are rarely presented as a bare word-to-word match. More often, you will see the headword embedded in a full sentence, with four answer choices offering different possible opposites, and your task is to pick the one that fits the sentence's meaning precisely, not merely a dictionary opposite pulled from memory. Practising with sentences, as this chapter has done throughout, prepares you far better than memorising isolated word pairs ever could.