Sound and Sense, 12

Our English dictionary has in it many words whose sounds and meanings can … confuse. In this next series of doggerel, I’ll be writing about several sorts of such words.

The first—the contronym: a word, says the Oxford English Dictionary, that has “two opposite or contradictory meanings.”

Earliest published use: 1962.

fix verb

1. to repair

2. to castrate

I fixed the broken swinging door.

The owner’s dog then bit me—for

A reason I can’t comprehend.

And while I lay there, on the mend,

In my own house, I thought about

Revenge. And in my dreams his snout—

His flashing, dripping, bloody fangs—

Created many anguished pangs.

But all my secret plans were nixed:

The neighbor took and got him fixed.

And now he lies there in the sun—

With only memories for fun.