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contrary
[ kon-trer-ee; kuhn-trair-ee ]
adjective
- opposite in nature or character; diametrically or mutually opposed:
contrary to fact; contrary propositions.
Synonyms: counter, conflicting, contradictory
- opposite in direction or position:
departures in contrary directions.
- being the opposite one of two:
I will make the contrary choice.
- unfavorable or adverse.
Synonyms: unfriendly, hostile
Antonyms: favorable
- perverse; stubbornly opposed or willful.
Synonyms: pigheaded, stubborn, headstrong, obstinate, intractable
Antonyms: complaisant, obliging
noun
- something that is contrary or opposite:
to prove the contrary of a statement.
- either of two contrary things.
- Logic. a proposition so related to another proposition that both may not be true though both may be false, as with the propositions “All judges are male” and “No judges are male.”
adverb
- in opposition; oppositely; counter:
to act contrary to one's own principles.
contrary
/ ˈkɒntrərɪ /
adjective
- opposed in nature, position, etc
contrary ideas
- kənˈtrɛərɪ perverse; obstinate
- (esp of wind) adverse; unfavourable
- (of plant parts) situated at right angles to each other
- logic (of a pair of propositions) related so that they cannot both be true at once, although they may both be false together Compare subcontrary contradictory
noun
- the exact opposite (esp in the phrase to the contrary )
- on the contraryquite the reverse; not at all
- either of two exactly opposite objects, facts, or qualities
- logic a statement that cannot be true when a given statement is true
adverb
- in an opposite or unexpected way
contrary to usual belief
- in conflict (with) or contravention (of)
contrary to nature
Derived Forms
- conˈtrariness, noun
Other Words From
- contrar·i·ly [kon, -trer-, uh, -lee, k, uh, n-, trair, -], adverb
- contrar·i·ness noun
- quasi-contrar·i·ly adverb
- quasi-contrar·y adjective
Word History and Origins
Word History and Origins
Origin of contrary1
Idioms and Phrases
- by contraries, contrary to expectation.
- on the contrary,
- in opposition to what has been stated.
- from another point of view:
On the contrary, there may be some who would agree with you.
- to the contrary,
- to the opposite effect:
I believe he is innocent, whatever they may say to the contrary.
- to a different effect.
More idioms and phrases containing contrary
see on the contrary ; to the contrary .Synonym Study
Example Sentences
Quite to the contrary, the law stays out of the way and gives the president tremendous leeway.
They argued that it was religiously impermissible for unrelated men and women to interact closely and accused Sharaa of seeking "vain public attention" and showing "indulgence" in matters contrary to strict religious teachings.
Again, many other jihadists reject the use of amulets, believing them to be contrary to the teachings of Islam.
They claim there is no way to accelerate emissions reductions at the ports without reducing the movement of cargo and diverting shipments to other less environmentally friendly ports, despite reams of evidence to the contrary.
Many have criticised this since then, with former civil servant Harsh Mander saying that it "opened the floodgates for this series of orders by courts that run contrary to the 1991 law".
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Related Words
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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