contra
preposition
against; in opposition or contrast to.
contra
1 American
[kon-truh]
/ ˈkɒn trə /
preposition
adverb
contra
2
American
[kon-truh, kawn-tr ah]
/ ˈkɒn trə, ˈkɔn trɑ /
noun
-
contras
plural
contra-
3
American
contra-
4
American
contra-
British
prefix
-
against; contrary; opposing; contrasting
contraceptive
contradistinction
-
(in music) pitched below
contrabass
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of contra1
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin contrā
Origin of contra2
First recorded in 1980–85; from Central American Spanish, shortening of contrarrevolucionario “counterrevolutionary”
Origin of contra-3
< Late Latin, Latin, prefixal use of adverb and preposition contrā
Origin of contra-4
< Italian < Latin; see contra- 1 ( def. ), counterpoint
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
In fact, the author argues that, contra the “biological essentialist” view that says women are made for child care and men for professional work, the sexes are actually more similar than they are different.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
She also judged a biscuit competition and participated in contra dances, which is what got her into this music in the first place.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2025
Was Sam Bankman-Fried not such a business pro after all, contra Michael Lewis?
From Slate ● Oct. 10, 2023
"Despite all these contra indicators, the market keeps selling off," Murphy said.
From Reuters ● Jan. 24, 2022
The octave below contra can be labelled CCC or Co; higher octaves can be labelled with higher numbers or more lines.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
From the National Security Agency he obtained top-secret encryption devices to create a secure communications link to the private operators in his contra- supply operation.
From Time Magazine Archive
He stands as a perfect contra- diction to those pedants who insist that journalism makes artistry impossible.
From Time Magazine Archive
Just days before the scheduled start of Gates' hearings, Alan Fiers, a former top CIA official, pleaded guilty to withholding information from Congress about his own knowledge of the contra- supply operation.
From Time Magazine Archive
In fact, a few campesinos destined for the camps have instead made their way to contra- controlled areas along the border with Honduras.
From Time Magazine Archive
Christian Science is neither made up of contra- dictory aphorisms nor of the inventions of those who scoff 358:15 at God.
From Science and Health, with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy
Mr. McFarlane, in interviews and in his memoirs, depicted the president as sometimes confused or vague about the details of what was happening with Iran and the contras.
From New York Times ● May 13, 2022
In a 1991 book, “Panama: The Whole Story,” he described Noriega’s long-standing ties to U.S. intelligence agencies, which sought his help in arming the contras, a counterrevolutionary force in Nicaragua.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 6, 2021
That stirred complaints from two AP Washington reporters who later said they felt Lewis held them back on their early reporting on North’s shadowy contacts with Nicaraguan contras.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 21, 2021
The contras died down for most of the past two decades, but are rumoured to be making a comeback amid growing frustration with Ortega’s increasingly authoritarian rule.
From The Guardian ● Sep. 25, 2016
Somoza was long gone, the contras were nothing but a memory.
From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez
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.
