contradiction in terms

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A statement that seems to contradict itself, with one part of it denying another. For example, I've always believed that “a poor millionaire” was a contradiction in terms. [Late 1700s]

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Words nearby contradiction in terms

contracture, contracyclical, contradance, contradict, contradiction, contradiction in terms, contradictious, contradictive, contradictory, contradistinction, contradistinguish

How to use contradiction in terms in a sentence

Lacey Noonan's A Gronking to Remember makes 50 Shades of Grey look like Madame Bovary in terms of its literary sophistication.
‘A Gronking to Remember’ Speed Read: 8 Naughtiest Bits|Emily Shire|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
This is a guy who has his son-in-law clean his eyeglasses, for crying out loud.
Will Chris Christie Regret His Cowboy Hug?|Matt Lewis|January 5, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Her travel clique has been known to arrive at an airport, bags packed, passport-in-hand, within hours of spotting a deal.
‘We Out Here’: Inside the New Black Travel Movement|Charlise Ferguson|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I was a journalist in New York City for the last of his three gubernatorial terms, a little more.
Mario Cuomo: An OK Governor, but a Far Better Person|Michael Tomasky|January 2, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Earl Spencer adds, “Effectively, my great-grandfather sold his children to his father-in-law.”
The Real-Life ‘Downton’ Millionairesses Who Changed Britain|Tim Teeman|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Results are in terms of bulk of precipitate, which must not be confused with percentage by weight.
A Manual of Clinical Diagnosis|James Campbell Todd
Such throats are trying, are they not?In case one catches cold; Ah, yes!
Boys and Girls Bookshelf; a Practical Plan of Character Building, Volume I (of 17)|Various
Modification in its terms growing in part out of these new conditions will subsequently be required from time to time.
Readings in Money and Banking|Chester Arthur Phillips
The commander-in-chief still kept him attached to the headquarter staff, and constantly employed him on special service.
Napoleon's Marshals|R. P. Dunn-Pattison
The society newspapers for the week alluded to the matter in veiled, but unmistakable terms.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume I (of 3)|Charles James Wills