Choose the word that is most opposite in meaning to the given word. Esteem

An antonym is a word whose meaning is the direct opposite of another word's meaning, not merely different, but reversed. To find it, first pin down the core sense of the given word, then pick the option that stands in polar opposition to that sense, ruling out any option that merely restates or resembles it.

Esteem means a favourable opinion held of someone: high regard, respect, or admiration. The word standing in direct opposition to holding someone in high regard is one that denotes a lack of regard or a low opinion of them.

• Regard denotes a favourable opinion or high esteem itself, so it restates the given word's meaning rather than reversing it.

• Respect likewise means holding someone in high esteem, again a synonym, not an opposite.

• Occasional describes how often something happens, a matter of frequency, and has no bearing on regard or esteem at all, so it cannot be the semantic opposite of Esteem.

The option that denotes a lack of regard, the polar opposite of high esteem, is Disrespect, which is the correct antonym.