Seeing words like "niraasha", Sohan thinks every antonym is formed with a prefix
Seeing words like "niraasha", Sohan thinks every antonym is formed with a prefix. So to make the antonym of "garam" (hot), he writes "agaram". His teacher says a completely different word is needed here. Who is right?
Who do you think is right? Pick one.
The answer: His teacher is right, the correct word is "thanda"
Why
Sohan built a pattern from words like 'निराशा', assuming every antonym must come from a prefix. But that's only one of two standard ways Hindi forms antonyms, not the only one. Many common words have antonyms that are entirely separate, independent words, with no prefix involved at all — 'गरम' (hot) opposes 'ठंडा' (cold), 'बड़ा' opposes 'छोटा', 'ऊँचा' opposes 'नीचा' — none of these attach a prefix to the original word. This is just like English 'happy→unhappy' (prefix) versus 'hot→cold' (a different word entirely). Test it: say 'अगरम' aloud — it doesn't sound like a real Hindi word, while 'ठंडा' is an everyday, familiar word. His teacher is right: the antonym of 'गरम' is 'ठंडा', a completely different word — not every antonym is formed with a prefix.
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