Synonyms, Antonyms and Words with Many Meanings
Synonyms, Antonyms and Words with Many Meanings
Two of the fifteen Hindi questions in the qualifying paper come from this topic. It rests entirely on memory and the words stay at school level, which is why losing marks here costs the most — the list is short, so it should be held firmly.
Synonyms Asked Most Often
| Word | Synonyms |
|---|---|
| सूर्य | रवि, भानु, दिनकर, दिवाकर |
| चंद्रमा | शशि, मयंक, राकेश |
| जल | नीर, वारि, सलिल, अंबु |
| पृथ्वी | धरा, वसुधा, भू, अवनि |
| आकाश | गगन, नभ, व्योम, अंबर |
| कमल | पंकज, नीरज, जलज, सरोज |
At the qualifying level most questions are built from these six families. Note that अंबु means water and अंबर means sky — that pair is placed among the options deliberately.
✗ अंबु means sky | ✓ अंबु means water; the word for sky is अंबर
Antonyms Asked Most Often
| Word | Antonym | Word | Antonym |
|---|---|---|---|
| आदि | अंत | सुख | दुख |
| उन्नति | अवनति | ज्ञान | अज्ञान |
| आय | व्यय | हार | जीत |
| शीत | उष्ण | स्वदेश | विदेश |
| आयात | निर्यात | जीवन | मृत्यु |
Many antonyms are formed simply by adding a prefix. The rule is simple — a word beginning with a consonant takes अ, as धर्म gives अधर्म and ज्ञान gives अज्ञान, and a word beginning with a vowel takes अन, as आदि gives अनादि and उचित gives अनुचित. This one rule solves several questions at once, so fix it before memorising any list.
Words with Many Meanings
Words carrying more than one meaning are called anekarthi. The question usually asks in which sense the word has been used in the given sentence.
| Word | Meanings |
|---|---|
| कर | hand, tax, ray |
| अर्थ | wealth, meaning |
| हरि | Vishnu, lion, monkey |
| काल | time, death |
| उत्तर | answer, direction |
Among these उत्तर is the simplest and the most frequently asked — it means both an answer and a direction. Always settle the meaning by placing the word inside the sentence, never by looking at the word alone.
याद करने का तरीका: शब्द तोड़कर अर्थ निकालिए। जलज यानी जल में जन्मा, पंकज यानी पंक में जन्मा — दोनों कमल। इससे रटना नहीं पड़ता।
TRE pointer: This is a qualifying paper, so the words stay at school level and repeat every year. The rule of अ and अन is the most useful one here, since it builds several antonyms at once. Remember the confusion between अंबु and अंबर as well.
60-Second Recap
- Two of the fifteen Hindi questions come from this topic.
- Six synonym families cover most of what is asked.
- अंबु means water while अंबर means sky.
- A consonant-initial word takes अ and a vowel-initial word takes अन.
- उन्नति pairs with अवनति and आयात with निर्यात.
- उत्तर means both an answer and a direction.
Frequently Asked Questions
How should synonyms be prepared for the qualifying paper?
In families rather than as a flat list, and only the six or seven families that actually recur. The words stay at school level here, so the whole set can be finished quickly. Splitting a word into its parts also helps, as जलज means born in water and stands for the lotus.
When is अ used and when अन in forming an antonym?
A word beginning with a consonant takes अ, as धर्म gives अधर्म and ज्ञान gives अज्ञान. A word beginning with a vowel takes अन, as आदि gives अनादि and उचित gives अनुचित. Fixing this one rule builds several antonyms without any memorising.
How is an anekarthi question answered?
Place the word inside the given sentence and see which meaning fits the sense. कर can mean a hand, a tax or a ray, but only the sentence settles which is meant. Choosing from the word alone, without reading the sentence, is where candidates usually go wrong.
Which anekarthi word is asked most often at this level?
उत्तर, because it carries two very familiar meanings — an answer and a direction. Both appear in ordinary sentences, so the question can be framed simply. हरि, कर and काल are the other words that recur at the qualifying level.