Abstract: The subject of the study is the concept of opposites in the Buryat language in a cognitive aspect. The object of the study is the antonymic correlates of the Buryat language. The study of the phenomenon of the opposite in the cognitive aspect makes it possible to determine the specifics of understanding the antonymic correlation and establish its criteria. The article discusses in detail the opposition in the language, the opposition in the Buryat language in terms of cognition, the function of the antonyms in the language. Particular attention is paid to the identification of specific features in the classification of antonyms in the Buryat language by the nature of the opposite.The main method of work is a descriptive method, including methods of observation, comparison and analogy, analysis of the data, classifications and generalization. The scientific novelty of the research is caused by the fact that for the first time antonymic correlates and their functions are considered in the Buryat language from the cognitive point of view. An attempt of semantic systematization of antonyms in the Buryat language is made and specific moments in the classification of antonyms are revealed. It is found that the classification of antonyms in the Buryat language can be carried out on the subject, parts of speech, on the principle of opposites.