against
- in opposition to; contrary to; adverse or hostile to: twenty votes against ten; against reason.
- in resistance to or defense from: protection against burglars.
- in an opposite direction to: to ride against the wind.
- into contact or collision with; toward; upon: The rain beat against the window.
- in contact with: to lean against the wall.
- in preparation for; in provision for: money saved against a rainy day.
- having as background: a design of flowers against a dark wall.
- in exchange for; as a balance to or debit or charge on: He asked for an advance against his salary.
- in competition with: a racehorse running against his own record time.
- in comparison or contrast with: a matter of reason as against emotion.
- beside; near; before: The car is against the building.
- Archaic. before; by the time that.
- over against, in contrast with: the rich over against the poor.
Origin of against
Examples from the Web for against
Contemporary Examples of against
Spouting off against police online has become criminalized in recent weeks.
The reason we were liberals is we were against oppression.
Bill Maher: Hundreds of Millions of Muslims Support Attack on ‘Charlie Hebdo’Lloyd Grove
January 8, 2015
Congress is nearing a vote on the Keystone XL pipeline, and lawmakers made their cases for—and against—it Sunday.
The two major complaints minority communities have against the police seem at first glance paradoxical.
And, of course, it was against the mixing of the races that the music inevitably provoked.
How Martin Luther King Jr. Influenced Sam Cooke’s ‘A Change Is Gonna Come’Peter Guralnick
December 28, 2014
Historical Examples of against
But at last there came a day against which no objections could be raised.
PhilotheaLydia Maria Child
I shall take you against your will—but I shall make you love me—in the end.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
The probabilities were all against that father's being still alive.
Brave and BoldHoratio Alger
He went over once more the day's arguments for and against the novel emprise.
The SpendersHarry Leon Wilson
They were good fighters and for a long time they were able to hold their own against all invaders.
Ancient ManHendrik Willem van Loon
against
- opposed to; in conflict or disagreement withthey fought against the legislation
- standing or leaning beside or in front ofa ladder against the wall
- coming in contact withthe branches of a tree brushed against the bus
- in contrast tosilhouettes are outlines against a light background
- having an adverse or unfavourable effect onthe economic system works against small independent companies
- as a protection from or means of defence from the adverse effects ofa safeguard against contaminated water
- in exchange for or in return for
- rare in preparation forhe gave them warm clothing against their journey through the night
- as against as opposed to or as compared withhe had two shots at him this time as against only one last time
Word Origin for against
Word Origin and History for against
early 12c., agenes "in opposition to," a southern variant of agen "again" (see again), with adverbial genitive. The parasitic -t turned up mid-14c. and was standard by early 16c., perhaps from influence of superlatives.
Idioms and Phrases with against
against
In addition to the idioms beginning with against
- against all odds
- against one's better judgment
- against one's will
- against the clock
- against the grain
- against the tide
also see:
- beat one's head against the wall
- cards are stacked against
- come up against
- count against
- dead set against
- guard against
- have something against
- hold something against
- lift a hand against
- over against
- pit someone against
- run against
- set against
- swim against
- turn against
- two strikes against
- up against