I love that word.
It has so much character.
Of course, examples of this type of figure of speech have character too.
They’re contradictory, satirical, rebellious, and downright conflicting in nature.
That’s because, by definition, an oxymoron is a combination of words that contradict each other like the phrase “new antiques.”
Are they “new” or are they “antique”?
Maybe neither?
Oxymorons are a fun figure of speech to share with your children. They can hunt for them in literature or use them in their daily speech.
I think it would be neat to have an Oxymoron Day where you try to catch as many oxymorons written or spoken as you can. You could also try to USE as many oxymorons as you can throughout your day.
Just a thought.
Anyway, below is a list of oxymorons to share with your children. This is by no means complete. There are just too many oxymorons floating around out there (and being created daily) for me to include in this list. But I thought I’d at least give you a sampling. Enjoy!
Oxymorons
accidentally on purpose
accurate estimate
accurate rumors
act naturally
adult child
advanced beginner
almost done
almost there
alone in a crowd
alone together
American English
another one
approximately equal
awfully good
awfully nice
bad luck
bittersweet
black gold
blind eye
boneless ribs
calculated risk
civil disobedience
clean dirt
clearly confused
clearly misunderstood
clever fool
completely unfinished
constant change
constant variable
crash landing
curved line
deafening silence
definite maybe
deliberate mistake
distant relative
dull knife
dull pain
educated guess
even odds
exact estimate
expert amateur
fail safe
fine mess
first annual
found missing
free slave
freezer burn
fresh frozen
front end
fuzzy logic
genuine imitation
giant miniature
global village
graduate student
grown child
half full
happy demise
harmless sin
honest crook
hopelessly optimistic
ill health
immediate future
increasing declines
individual group
inside out
jumbo shrimp
just war
larger half
least favorite
less is more
liquid crystal
literal interpretation
(a) little big
live recording
living death
loose fit
loud whisper
love-hate relationship
major general
medium large
midnight sun
minor disaster
much less
near miss
never again
new antiques
new routine
now then
numb feeling
objective opinion
old news
once again
one pair
only choice
organized mess
original copy
paid volunteer
partially completed
passive aggressive
plastic glasses
plastic silverware
poor little rich girl
pretty ugly
puppy dog
questionable answer
quiet noise
random order
real-life fairy tale
reckless caution
regular special
relaxation exercise
resident alien
restless sleep
retired worker
sad smile
same difference
science fiction
second best
serious fun
sharp curve
short distance
silent applause
sleepwalk
slow race
small world
solved mystery
spendthrift
steel wool
still moving
student teacher
sun shade
sure bet
sweet sorrow
sweet tart
temporary fix
thinking out loud
timeless moment
tough love
true story
unattainable victory
unbelievably real
uncommonly common
uninvited guest
unusual routine
upside down
valuable junk
vanilla fudge
vastly small
virtual reality
water vapor
whole piece
wordless book
work party
working vacation
young adult
zero deficit
* * *
Did you and your children have fun with this list of oxymorons? I hope you did. You are more than welcome to share this list of rebellious phrases with anyone you like, just don’t blame me if it causes any conflict in your life. 😉
Pinkoddy says
I love oxymorons and bitter sweet is the one that I learnt and remembered what they were by. Great list – I shall be featuring on this weeks Kids Co-op.
Susan Brown says
Oxymorons are fun, aren’t they? Thanks so much for featuring this.