contradiction in terms

Idioms  

1. 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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Example Sentences

It made her seem like a contradiction in terms, a performing seal, rather than a complex human being.

From Los Angeles Times

Despite having been converted by a gangster, he regards the idea of religious criminals as a contradiction in terms.

From BBC

Constitutional law scholar John Hart Ely once scoffed that “ ‘substantive due process’ is a contradiction in terms — sort of like ‘green pastel redness.’

From Washington Post

Similarly, the claim that thriving multiethnic democracy is a contradiction in terms may come as news to citizens of places like Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, Ghana and Botswana — often-cited examples of successful diverse democracies.

From Washington Post

FOR SOME, THE idea of environmentally conscious contemporary art is a contradiction in terms.

From New York Times