anˈtithəsə̇s, aan- noun
( plural antithe·ses -əˌsēz)
Etymology: Late Latin, from Greek, literally, opposition, from antithe- (stem of antitithenai to set against, oppose, from anti- anti- (I) + tithenai to set) + -sis — more at do
1.
a. : the rhetorical opposing or contrasting of ideas by means of grammatically parallel arrangements of words, clauses, or sentences (as action, not words or they promised freedom and provided slavery ) ; broadly : a balanced contrast formed by a pair or several pairs of objects or concepts, each member in a pair being the opposite of the other in essence or in particulars
the antithesis of prose and verse
b.
(1) : the second of the two opposing constituents of an antithesis
antithesis opposed to thesis
(2) : an object or concept that counteracts or contradicts another
that mystic faith in unseen powers which is the antithesis of materialism — Rose Macaulay
: the direct opposite : contrary
his temperament is the very antithesis of mine
2. : a philosophical proposition opposed to a given thesis
a. Kantianism : the negative member of one of the antinomies of reason
b. Hegelianism : the negative moment in the movement of thought that denies the thesis and is in turn transcended in the synthesis
Synonyms: see comparison