Oppositum

Oppositum is a Latin noun meaning the opposite, a thing placed against another, or the counterpart. In classical and medieval Latin, the noun oppositum and the related adjective oppositus are used to label something that stands in opposition or lies on the opposite side of a referent. The term comes from the verb opponere "to place against," with the participle oppositus describing something "placed opposite."

In anatomical and botanical usage, oppositum appears in technical phrases that describe opposition or paired positioning. In anatomy, the related form oppositus is used to indicate a part that can oppose or touch another (for example, the opposable thumb). In botany, leaves may be described as opposita or opposite when they occur in opposing pairs at a node, for example "folia opposita."

In philosophy and logic, oppositum sometimes appears in older Latin texts to denote the opposite proposition or counterexample, though more common terms are oppositio or contrarium. The noun oppositum thus functions as a general label for a counterpart in a paired or opposed relation.

Modern usage is mainly scholarly or historical, often encountered in glossaries, philology, or discussions of Latin terminology. In English, the direct cognate is "opposite," and the related noun "opposition" shares the same Latin root.

See also: Opposite, Opposition, Opponere, Oppositus, Oppositus.