opposite vs. to be in opposition

[palinkasocsi]

Can we say that:

good - bad --- these two words are opposites (diametrical opposites)

BUT

in --- It was a wonderful party vs. It was a lousy party --- 'wonderful' vs. 'lousy' are NOT opposites but they are in opposition?

In other words, do you agree that good-bad; black-white; male-female etc. are OPPOSITES, while if a pair of words cannot be cleary measured as DIAMETRICAL OPPOSITES, it is better to say that they are IN OPPOSITION (rather than they are OPPOSITES)?

Thank you very much.

[oregeezer]

In my lexicon "wonderful" and "lousy" ARE opposites. I am a native American English speaker with over 75 years of practice. Most Americans would recognize them as opposites. I think there are two or three grammarians in Britain who are the only people in the world who would INSIST on defining them as "in opposition but not opposites".

[palinkasocsi]

You are a native Oregeezer, that's fine!

Then how could you differentiate between the two groups (wonderful-lousy; alive-dead) terminologically? Because you might agree that the two relations are not exactly the same kind (as I have explicated in my first message).

Thank you!