The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

irritant, bore, Colloq pain, pain in the neck or arse or US ass:
He's such an annoyance, I wish he'd leave.
answer n. 1 reply, response; rejoinder, retort, riposte, Colloq
comeback: The boy's answer is unprintable. 2 Law defence,
counter-statement, plea, explanation; Technical declaration,
plea, replication, rejoinder, surrejoinder, rebutter or
rebuttal, surrebutter or surrebuttal: Her answer to the charge
was 'Not Guilty'. 3 solution, explanation: Ten points were
taken off because I had the wrong answer to question three.
--v. 4 reply, respond; retort, rejoin, riposte: When I ask you
a question, I expect you to answer. 5 satisfy, fulfil, suffice
for, meet, suit, serve, fit, fill, conform to, correlate with:
The bequest answered my needs for the moment. 6 answer back.
talk back (to): How dare you answer your father back! 7 answer
for. a be accountable or responsible or answerable for, be to
blame for; take or undertake responsibility for; sponsor,
support, guarantee: I answer alone to Allah for my motives. So
shall my righteousness answer for me. b make amends for, atone
for, suffer the consequences of: Caesar was ambitious and he
answered for it with his life. c take or accept the blame for:
Andy shouldn't have to answer for his brother's shortcomings.
antagonism
n. 1 opposition, animosity, enmity, rancour, hostility,
antipathy: It is difficult to understand your antagonism
towards classical music. 2 conflict, rivalry, discord,
dissension, friction, strife; contention: Giving jobs only to
personal friends has engendered antagonism.
antagonist
n. adversary, opponent, enemy, foe; contender, competitor,
competition, opposition: The antagonists prepared to fight.
anticipate
v. 1 forestall, intercept, preclude, obviate, prevent; nullify:
She anticipated her opponent's manoeuvre by moving the queen's
bishop one square. 2 foretell, forecast, predict, prophesy,
foretaste, foresee: He anticipated that flying would be a
future mode of locomotion. 3 expect, look forward to, prepare
for; count or reckon on: We eagerly anticipated the arrival of
Uncle Robert.