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• anti
  anti

  noun

  a person who is opposed to a particular practice, party, policy, action, etc.
• anti-
  anti-

  a prefix meaning “against,” “opposite of,” “antiparticle of,” used in the formation of compound words (anticline ); used freely in combination with elements of any origin (antibody; antifreeze; antiknock; antilepton ).
• anti–
  anti–

  A prefix whose basic meaning is “against.” It is used to form adjectives that mean “counteracting” (such as antiseptic, preventing infection). It is also used to form nouns referring to substances that counteract other substances (such as antihistamine, a substance counteracting histamine), and nouns meaning “something that displays opposite, reverse, or inverse characteristics of something else” (such as anticyclone, a storm that circulates in the opposite direction from a cyclone). Before a vowel it becomes ant–, as in antacid.

anti

¹ American  

[an-tahy, an-tee] / ˈæn taɪ, ˈæn ti /

noun

plural

antis

1. a person who is opposed to a particular practice, party, policy, action, etc.

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anti- ² American  

1. a prefix meaning “against,” “opposite of,” “antiparticle of,” used in the formation of compound words (anticline ); used freely in combination with elements of any origin (antibody; antifreeze; antiknock; antilepton ).

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anti ¹ British  

/ ˈæntɪ /

adjective

1. opposed to a party, policy, attitude, etc

   he won't join because he is rather anti

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noun

1. an opponent of a party, policy, etc

anti- ² British  

prefix

1. against; opposing

   anticlerical

   antisocial

2. opposite to

   anticlimax

   antimere

3. rival; false

   antipope

4. counteracting, inhibiting, or neutralizing

   antifreeze

   antihistamine

5. designating the antiparticle of the particle specified

   antineutron

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anti– Scientific  

1. A prefix whose basic meaning is “against.” It is used to form adjectives that mean “counteracting” (such as antiseptic, preventing infection). It is also used to form nouns referring to substances that counteract other substances (such as antihistamine, a substance counteracting histamine), and nouns meaning “something that displays opposite, reverse, or inverse characteristics of something else” (such as anticyclone, a storm that circulates in the opposite direction from a cyclone). Before a vowel it becomes ant–, as in antacid.

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Sensitive Note

See homophobia.

Etymology

Origin of anti¹

First recorded in 1780–90; by shortening of words prefixed with anti-

Origin of anti-²

From Middle English, from Latin, from Greek, prefixal use of antí; akin to Sanskrit ánti “opposite,” Latin ante, Middle Dutch ende (giving rise to Dutch en “and”), English an- in answer. See ante-, and

Explanation

To be anti is to be opposed to or against something, like an action, political party, or government. If you are anti love scenes, you might prefer an action flick. The word anti comes from the prefix anti-, which means “against” or “opposite,” and is still used in English words, such as antibodies and anti-hero. As a word on its own anti is an adjective or preposition describing a person or thing that is against someone or something else. In a casual sense anti is sometimes used as a noun for a person who is against something — if you’re not on the pro side, you’re an anti.

Example Sentences

“I quickly realized” that it “was anti content,” said another.

From Salon • Apr. 29, 2026

It triggered up to eight times more interferon-gamma, an important anti tumor signal released by killer T cells.

From Science Daily • Feb. 18, 2026

Terpenoids are compounds commonly found in plants that can have antioxidant and anti inflammatory properties.

From Science Daily • Jan. 14, 2026

"The number of people in the UK who are really anti vaccine in the classic sense, is very small," he added.

From BBC • Dec. 4, 2025

An Austrian anti air lieutenant installs a detachment of eight at the Hotel of Bees.

From "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr

Related Words

• adverse
• belligerent
• bitter
• contentious
• contrary
• hateful
• inhospitable
• inimical
• nasty
• opposed
• unfavorable
• unfriendly
• unsympathetic