Proponent

I've been using the word 'proponent' recently.  I have described myself as a proponent of some idea or another.  At one point, I wondered how I would describe the word if I was asked what it meant.

"Well," I said to myself, "a pro-ponent is the opposite of an o-pponent."  Then I was silent.

I never realized that connection before.  I always thought of a proponent as a supporter, as one who agreed with some idea or action.  It wasn't until those words spilled out of my mouth that I realized that an opponent is the enemy of the proponent.

And it was not until writing this post at this very moment that I realized all of the other connections in the different word forms.

A proponent proposes.  An opponent opposes.  I always thought think of proposing as bringing up a new idea and suggesting it, and opposing is fighting against something.  But never had I thought of them as a word pair the way I think of 'up' and 'down' or 'in' and 'out'.

A proponent proposes a proposition.  An opponent opposes with an opposition. Again, this is a set of word pairs which are not often thought of as word pairs.

The reason I bring this up is that I am giving you a tool. You now have a new set of words that you can juxtapose in a way to add a poignant layering to your writing.