In lexical semantics, opposites are words that lie in an inherently incompatible binary relationship as in the opposite pairs big : small, long : short, and precede : follow. The notion of incompatibility here refers to the fact that one word in an opposite pair entails that it is not the other pair member. For example, something that is long entails that it is not short. It is referred to as a 'binary' relationship because there are two members in a set of opposites. The relationship between opposites is known as opposition. A member of a pair of opposites can generally be determined by the question What is the opposite of X ?
The term antonym (and the related antonymy) is commonly taken to be synonymous with opposite, but antonym also has other more restricted meanings. Graded (or gradable) antonyms are word pairs whose meanings are opposite and which lie on a continuous spectrum (hot, cold). Complementary antonyms are word pairs whose meanings are opposite but whose meanings do not lie on a continuous spectrum (push, pull). Relational antonyms are word pairs where opposite makes sense only in the context of the relationship between the two meanings (teacher, pupil). These more restricted meanings may not apply in all scholarly contexts, with Lyons (1968, 1977) defining antonym to mean gradable antonyms, and Crystal (2003) warns that antonymy and antonym should be regarded with care.
My thoughts of you have broke my mind, a soul inside of me to find
Give to you was all of me, hidden from you is all I'll be
I've watched my life go by, nothing's faded faster than you
You'll never see me cry, this worth is not for you
Is this my suffering, the bitter cost of letting you see me?
This vacant life you bring to me won't be the reason that I
Glance into a place once knew, now estranged and darkened to me
A place that changed by all too few
Why is this real?
The dreamt dispair I find within, delivered by your eyes
An empty stare I welcome you, my own mind I defy
I've watched my life go by, nothing's faded faster than you
You'll never see me cry, this worth is not for you
Is this my suffering, the bitter cost of letting you see me?
This vacant life you bring to me won't be the reason that I bleed
Following hollow dreams that lead me to you
Breaking through I see
Following hollow dreams that lead me to you
Breaking through I see
I've watched my life go by, nothing faded faster than you
You'll never see me cry, this worth is not for you
Is this my suffering, the bitter cost of letting you see me?