Oxymorons - English lesson

This week's Word of the Week is "oxymoron". Look at this expression. What’s unusual about it?

“It’s a definite possibility.”

This is what’s known as an oxymoron – a combination of words with ideas that seem to contradict one another. In this case, the word“definite” means that something is certain, but the word “possibility” doesn’t refer to certainty at all – so, the combination of words seems to be a contradiction.

Oxymorons are extremely common in English, and are often used in both spoken and written language. Here are a few more in bold type. How are they oxymorons?

a) The country was on the brink of civil war.

b) At last they were alone together.

c) We were all terribly pleased that the wedding went off so well.

d) Please return the original copy to me.

e) Lottery numbers come out in random order.

f) The salesman was a real phony.

g) The man was in ill health.

h) You clearly misunderstood what I want.

Oxymorons often appear in literature and are particularly popular with writers. For example:

a) “I like a smuggler. He is the only honest thief.” (Charles Lamb).

b) “No light, but darkness rather visible.” (From John Milton’s description of hell in Paradise Lost)

c) “...feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health, still-waking sleep, that is not what it is!” (From Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare, who is attempting to describe their love)

Some common expressions are often described as oxymorons. This is often done for comic effect. For example, people say that the term “military intelligence” is an oxymoron because the two words (“military” + “intelligence”) contradict one another. Here are a few more common expressions that some people describe as oxymorons. Do you think they deserve to be classified as oxymorons?

Airline food

Educational TV

British cuisine

Married life

Marital bliss

Political leadership

Government worker

Computer security

Political science

Rap music

Western culture

Business ethics

Political wisdom

Civil servant

Gourmet pizza

Now go and have some serious fun and see if you can find any oxymorons. They’re a lot more common than you think! 


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