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Synthesize 6 |
2003
2016 Donald Johnson - email: donaldjamesjohnsonsr@thewaythetruthandthelife.net
contrary
SYLLABICATION: |
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PRONUNCIATION: |
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![]() ![]() Opposed, as in character or purpose. 2) Opposite in direction or position. 4) Adverse; unfavorable. 5) also: Given to recalcitrant behavior; willful or perverse |
ETYMOLOGY: |
[Middle English contrarie, from
Anglo-Norman, from Latin contr![]() ![]() ![]() | |
noun. pl. :
con'trar |
con-trar-ies 1) Something that is opposite or contrary. 2) Either of two opposing or contrary things: "Truth is perhaps . . . a dynamic compound of opposites, savage contraries for a moment conjoined" (A. Bartlett Giamatti). 3) Logic A proposition related to another in such a way that if the latter is true, the former must be false, but if the latter is false, the former is not necessarily true. |
contrary Use Contrary in a sentence
adjective
1.
opposite in
nature or character; diametrically or mutually opposed: contrary to
fact; contrary propositions.
2.
opposite in
direction or position: departures in contrary
directions.
3.
being the
opposite one of two: I will make the contrary choice.
4.
unfavorable or
adverse.
5.
perverse; stubbornly
opposed or willful.
What Is Contrary?
What Is Contrarious?
What Is Contrariness?
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What Is Con-trar-y?
What Is Contrary?
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What Is Contrariness?
What Is Contrarious?
noun, plural con-trar-ies.
6.
something that
is contrary or opposite: to prove
the contrary of a statement.
7.
either of
two contrary things.
8.
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
Idioms
9.
in opposition;
oppositely; counter: to act
contrary to one's own principles.
10.
by contraries, contrary to expectation.
11.
on the contrary,
a.
in opposition
to what has been stated.
b.
from another
point of view: On
the contrary, there may be some who would agree
with you.
12.
to the contrary,
a.
to the
opposite effect: I believe he is
innocent, whatever they may say to the contrary.
b.
to a
different effect.
Origin:
1200--50; Middle English contrarie < Anglo-French < Latin contrārius. See contra1 , -ary Related forms
con-trar-i-ness,
noun
qua-si-con-trar-i-ly,
adverb
qua-si-con-trar-y,
adjective
Synonyms
1. contradictory, conflicting, counter. See opposite. 4. unfriendly, hostile. Contrary, adverse both describe something that opposes. Contrary conveys an idea of something impersonal and objective whose opposition happens to be unfavorable: contrary winds. Adverse suggests something more personally unfriendly or even hostile; it emphasizes the idea of the resulting misfortune to that which is opposed: The judge rendered a decision adverse to the defendant. 5. intractable, obstinate, headstrong, stubborn, pig-headed.
Antonyms
4. favorable. 5. obliging, complaisant.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, Random House, Inc. 2014. Cite This Source
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Link To contrary
Collins
World English Dictionary
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009 Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
contrary
mid-14c., from
Anglo-Fr. contrarie, from L. contrarius "opposite, opposed," from contra
"against" (see contra).
"If we take the statement All men are mortal , its contrary is Not all men are mortal , its converse is All mortal beings are men , & its opposite is No men are mortal . The contrary, however, does not exclude the opposite, but includes it as its most extreme form. Thus This is white has only one opposite, This is black , but many contraries, as This is not white, This is coloured, This is dirty, This is black ; & whether the last form is called the contrary , or more emphatically the opposite , is usually indifferent. But to apply the opposite to a mere contrary (e.g. to I did not hit him in relation to I hit him , which has no opposite), or to the converse (e.g. to He hit me in relation to I hit him , to which it is neither contrary nor opposite), is a looseness that may easily result in misunderstanding; the temptation to go wrong is intelligible when it is remembered that with certain types of sentence ( A exceeds B ) the converse & the opposite are identical ( B exceeds A )." [Fowler]Related: Contrarily (mid-16c.).
Online Etymology Dictionary, 2010 Douglas Harper
Cite This Source
American Heritage
The American Heritage- Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin. Cite This Source |