Definition of opposite in English:

opposite

adjective

1attributive Situated on the other or further side when seen from a specified or implicit viewpoint; facing.
‘a crowd gathered on the opposite side of the street’
- ‘The trees can be clearly seen from both sides of the river and are situated opposite Asgill House.’
- ‘Spirit touched down on January 4 and its twin, Opportunity, landed on the opposite side of Mars on January 25.’
- ‘No, you can't play on the opposite side of the instrument.’
- ‘The running mates are running on opposite sides of the country.’
- ‘When they tried the opposite side of the court by serving down to CJ they found him in excellent form and he brilliantly returned everything.’
- ‘Up on the opposite side of the road, hiding in the tall grass of the ditch, was a little orange and white striped kitten, peeking out.’
- ‘Then I saw, on the opposite side of the road, a young guy.’
- ‘But as a bonus, while I pumped gas, a man in a Subaru Outback drove up to the opposite side of the pump and jumped out.’
- ‘Daniel ran away with a friend down the opposite side of the hill.’
- ‘Thankfully, Fiona works on the opposite side of Manhattan.’
- ‘Spirit's twin should land on the opposite side of Mars on January 24.’
- ‘But this was soon tempered as I walked through the tunnel leading from the entrance of the mountain to its opposite side.’
- ‘One stone approximately a foot in width and length and half a foot in height was thrown to the opposite side of the road around 20 metres away.’
- ‘I could tell you about the cab which, ordered by phone, announced its arrival by loud horn blasts from the opposite side of the street.’
- ‘But the intense firepower from the opposite side kept me hiding in the trench most of the time, which was quite shameful.’
- ‘The police admit that on such roads there is a tendency among drivers to speed since there are no vehicles approaching from the opposite side.’
- ‘They are of course quite unrelated, but it's interesting to note such similarities in species on opposite sides of the planet.’
- ‘I always fished from the opposite side of the hole because about nine inches below its edge, at water level, a wide flat rock jutted out.’
- ‘For the first time in longer than I can remember, I thought of nothing but the petite girl standing on the opposite side of the glass.’
- ‘Speakers on the opposite wall emitted applause that grew to a crescendo and diminished.’
facing, face to face with, across from
facing, opposing
View synonyms
1. 1.1Botany (of leaves or shoots) arising in pairs at the same level on opposite sides of the stem.
  ‘They were harvested in pairs because the plants produce a pair of primary, opposite leaves at each node.’
  ‘The opposite leaf of each node was used for hydraulic experiments.’
  ‘The corresponding opposite leaf received only radiation of selected wavelengths.’
  ‘Leaves are opposite and leaf blades are ovate with many teeth.’
  ‘Lachenalias in general are small fleshy bulbs with two upright, opposite leaves.’
2. 1.2(of angles) between opposite sides of the intersection of two lines.
  ‘The first step is to show that if a line N meets two parallel lines L and M, then opposite angles are equal.’
2Completely different; of a contrary kind.
‘a word that is opposite in meaning to another’
‘currents flowing in opposite directions’
- ‘On the fretless guitar this means that I can glissando in opposite directions on different strings.’
- ‘These two pictures where taken only a few seconds apart but in opposite directions.’
- ‘On closer inspection, he saw that three different sets of prints trailed off in three opposite directions.’
- ‘With that, they both scurried off in opposite directions.’
- ‘Moments later, the two made off with the stolen money in opposite directions, one of them reportedly headed for the Morne Du Don area.’
- ‘Prominent Turks and Americans have been traveling this week in essentially opposite directions.’
- ‘On each occasion, we try hard to stare in opposite directions.’
- ‘They exit the house and run at break-neck speed, in opposite directions, around the block.’
- ‘Meanwhile, two motorcycles with sidecars drive in opposite directions.’
- ‘It's really fascinating to watch these trains move in opposite directions at very high speed.’
- ‘The two of them sauntered off in opposite directions, as if aimlessly.’
- ‘She turned away, got back in the van and they all drove away, I assume in opposite directions.’
- ‘Essentially, the news media will go in two, seemingly opposite directions.’
- ‘At one point the female caught me watching them and then everyone took off in opposite directions.’
- ‘He hailed another auto and we went off in opposite directions.’
- ‘Before the match, Andy Irvine had pointed to the flags which were blowing in opposite directions at either end of the ground.’
- ‘This could best be achieved by making the track two lanes, each heading in opposite directions.’
- ‘Both times we have exchanged hurried salutations, since we've been going in opposite directions.’
- ‘This is good because it means trains heading in opposite directions won't in future have to wait for one another.’
- ‘There is a locomotive at each end of the train, but they are pulling in opposite directions.’
conflicting, contrasting, incompatible, irreconcilable, inconsistent, antithetical, converse, contradictory, clashing, contrary, at variance, at odds, different, differing, divergent, dissimilar, unlike, unalike, disagreeing, opposed, opposing, poles apart, polar, obverse
View synonyms
1. 2.1attributive Being the other of a contrasted pair.
  ‘the opposite ends of the price range’
  ‘Two leading scientists on opposite sides of the debate join us.’
  ‘Some of us had been on opposite sides in the recent campaign.’
  ‘Two congressmen on opposite sides of the debate will join me.’
  ‘The Moran brothers, Ollie and Niall, will be on opposite sides and could find themselves marking each other in midfield.’
  ‘As they grow up amid the emerging wave of nationalist fervor, their friendship becomes strained as they find themselves on opposite sides.’
  ‘It gives a detailed insight into the troubled times in the early part of the 1920s when members of some families took opposite sides in the Civil War.’
  ‘Campaigners on opposite sides of the Nice Treaty debate conflicted yesterday over how the outcome of the Referendum will affect the economy.’
  ‘In contrast, the introduction of a positive charge had the opposite effect.’
  ‘By contrast, Mouchiroud, Gautier, and Bernardi found the opposite tendency.’
  ‘By contrast, the Act goes to the opposite extreme and really tells us very little about what will happen if the association cannot meet its debts.’

noun

A person or thing that is totally different from or the reverse of someone or something else.
‘we were opposites in temperament’
‘the literal is the opposite of the figurative’
- ‘These different faiths are not to be regarded as opposites or contradictories.’
- ‘But at the same time they are so different that you might well think of them as opposites.’
- ‘Indeed, it's those co-existing opposites that underpin the whole movie.’
- ‘A term equally applicable to extreme opposites such as those I have cited cannot tell us anything consequential.’
- ‘But it's soon obvious the two are polar opposites with absolutely nothing in common.’
- ‘It's a cliché, but also a truism, that love and hate are not opposites but, rather, intimately entwined.’
- ‘It is commonly held that opposites attract, and these two are no exception.’
- ‘He described consciousness and reality as a unity of opposites in which the material is fundamental.’
- ‘An integration of inner and outer duality is possible now to create a unity or mystical union of opposites.’
- ‘It is wrong to view the public and private sectors as polar opposites that are always in competition.’
- ‘Although they have been portrayed as opposites, in reality they amount to the same thing.’
- ‘It also seems to have been, at least in some respects, an attraction of opposites.’
- ‘Some currency pairs move in tandem with each other, while others may be polar opposites.’
- ‘In the spiritual world it is utterly impossible to bring two opposites together.’
- ‘Also, here, desire and transgression are articulated through a systematic presentation of opposites.’
- ‘It is said that opposites attract, but apparently not when it comes to friendship.’
- ‘Neither of them ever believed their elders when they said that opposites attract.’
- ‘Some scholars have identified Jabir's sulphur and mercury with the Aristotelian opposites fire and water.’
- ‘His central tenet is that equality and prosperity are opposites.’
- ‘They were polar opposites and yet awesome friends and that was my favorite part about them.’
reverse, converse, antithesis, contrary, inverse, obverse, contradiction
View synonyms

adverb

In a position facing a specified or implied subject.
‘she was sitting almost opposite’
‘he went into the shop opposite’

preposition

1In a position on the other side of a specific area from; facing.
‘they sat opposite one another’
- ‘The new crossing will be positioned opposite the recently constructed paved area at the top of Finkle Street giving more room for pedestrians waiting to cross the road.’
- ‘Cricklade parents are unhappy with plans to build sheltered flats on a green space and play area opposite the town's junior school.’
- ‘Down a side street, opposite the bus stop a shouting man is sitting on a square of wood, bouncing up and down in an unsuccessful attempt to snap it.’
- ‘We were then asked to perform, so we took our positions in the large, empty area opposite the table.’
- ‘When Paul Cook was in hospital he was sitting opposite a biker who had been involved in an accident.’
- ‘Tape the left side collar piece over the reversed pattern, positioning it opposite the previous collar half.’
- ‘She sits down opposite the side of the table that he sat down at.’
- ‘He was awake, and leaning over the side of his bed, opposite the side I was sitting on.’
- ‘So I reached the area just opposite the basketball courts for Roebuck High School now called Louis Lynch secondary.’
- ‘During the past couple of weeks work has begun on the dangerous stretch of road on the north side of town opposite the Post Office.’
- ‘North is classically defined as the cardinal point opposite the sun's position at noon.’
- ‘The garden area was beautifully presented as was the small landscaped area opposite the school.’
- ‘He painted them with big brushes, on giant canvases, working in high positions opposite the peaks he captures.’
- ‘It will be moved to a position almost directly opposite the present one, but it will be much better and safer.’
- ‘But the area opposite the rail station exit is only the tip of the iceberg.’
- ‘On the other side, the one opposite the entrance gate, the bulk of the home supporters gather.’
- ‘The new play area located opposite the Town Hall was open to the public on Saturday afternoon.’
- ‘He ended up being in exactly the same position as the man opposite him.’
- ‘Marvin was sitting opposite me on the other side of the fire.’
- ‘The most typical manifestations include sudden weakness of the face, arm, or leg, and altered sensation or numbness, on the side of the body opposite the stroke.’
2(of a leading actor) in a complementary role to (another)
‘the star was a young man playing opposite an older woman’
- ‘Ever since he came into public consciousness for his role in Minority Report opposite Tom Cruise, he's proven to be a force to be reckoned with.’
- ‘Playing opposite her in the role of Gianetta was Rhiannon, who joined the club three and a half years ago, after a friend recommended it.’
- ‘Macfadyen had agreed to star in Middletown last year but then was offered the role as Darcy opposite Hollywood star Knightley.’
- ‘Playing opposite the Irish actor Pierce Brosnan would undoubtedly be her biggest role yet.’
- ‘After that she will star opposite Scottish actor Ken Stott in the detective drama Messiah.’

Phrases

the opposite sex

Women in relation to men or vice versa.
‘he is a shy guy who finds communication with the opposite sex complicated’
- ‘I have always been a bit diffident in matters concerning the opposite sex, perhaps due to a lack of female role models.’
- ‘These also differ depending on whether someone is texting their own gender or someone from the opposite sex.’

opposites attract

Used to explain the phenomenon of dissimilar people taking a strong or romantic interest in each other.
‘clearly, opposites attract, but fortunately, the film doesn't follow typical romantic movie conventions’
‘would such opposites attract, or would these two conflicting musical spirits lock horns and fight it out?’