paradox
[noun]
Synonyms: contradiction, anomaly, enigma, oddity, puzzle

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

par‧a‧dox /ˈpærədɒks $ -dɑːks/ noun
[Date: 1500-1600; Language: Latin; Origin: paradoxum, from Greek, from paradoxis 'opposite to what is expected']

1. [countable] a situation that seems strange because it involves two ideas or qualities that are very different:
It’s a paradox that in such a rich country there can be so much poverty.

2. [countable] a statement that seems impossible because it contains two opposing ideas that are both true:
The paradox is that fishermen would catch more fish if they fished less.

3. [uncountable] the use of statements that are a paradox in writing or speech
—paradoxical /ˌpærəˈdɒksɪkəl◂ $ -ˈdɑːk-/ adjective

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

paradox
noun
ADJ. apparent | central | curious
VERB + PARADOX pose, present The facts pose something of a paradox.
explain, resolve
PREP. ~ about The paradox about time is that it seems to go faster as we become older and less active.
~ between the paradox between the real and the ideal
~ in the paradox in the relationship between creativity and psychosis
PHRASES by a curious paradox By a curious paradox, the team became less motivated the more games it won.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲