as in paradox
someone or something with qualities or features that seem to conflict with one another
her outfit is a sartorial dichotomy: an elegant gown and ratty old tennis shoes
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Recent Examples of dichotomy
WhistlePig is a distillery dichotomy.
—
Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 26 Oct. 2025
All under Guadagnino’s scrupulous direction and cinematographer Malik Sayeed’s (Belly) visualization, the performative guise of Ivy League school decorum delivers as the perfect dichotomy to the serious nature of what these characters put each other through.
—Malik Peay, Essence, 9 Oct. 2025
The house’s spectacle in Grand Palais and fashion show is rooted in technological, futuristic and artisanal imaginations, while experiencing a dichotomy with the reinvention of clothing, which carries a sensitive memory of the past — projecting a constellation of colors, codes and values.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 7 Oct. 2025
There should be no dichotomy here.
—Rick Tumlinson, Space.com, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dichotomy
Jonah Flicker, Robb Report, 26 Oct. 2025
All under Guadagnino’s scrupulous direction and cinematographer Malik Sayeed’s (Belly) visualization, the performative guise of Ivy League school decorum delivers as the perfect dichotomy to the serious nature of what these characters put each other through.
—Malik Peay, Essence, 9 Oct. 2025
The house’s spectacle in Grand Palais and fashion show is rooted in technological, futuristic and artisanal imaginations, while experiencing a dichotomy with the reinvention of clothing, which carries a sensitive memory of the past — projecting a constellation of colors, codes and values.
—Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 7 Oct. 2025
There should be no dichotomy here.
—Rick Tumlinson, Space.com, 25 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for dichotomy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dichotomy
paradox
Noun
-
That’s the strange paradox of this moment.—
Natalie Unterstell,
Time,
6 Nov. 2025
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This paradox could have an impact on COP30, experts tell CNN.—
Andrew Freedman,
CNN Money,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Dichotomy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dichotomy. Accessed 16 Nov. 2025.
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