counteract
Americanverb (used with object)
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counteracts,
present (3rd person singular)
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counteracted,
past participle, past
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counteracting
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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counteracternoun
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counteractionnoun
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counteractornoun
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counteractantadjective
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counteractiveadjective
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noncounteractiveadjective
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uncounteractedadjective
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counteractinglyadverb
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counteractivelyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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counteractsimple
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counteractssimple
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have counteractedperfect
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has counteractedperfect
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am counteractingprogressive
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are counteractingprogressive
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is counteractingprogressive
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have been counteractingperfect progressive
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has been counteractingperfect progressive
Past
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counteractedsimple
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had counteractedperfect
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was counteractingprogressive
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were counteractingprogressive
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had been counteractingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of counteract
Explanation
To counteract is to work against something in an attempt to reverse it or cancel it out. You can try to counteract the neighbors' annoyance at your loud music by bringing them some homemade brownies. When you counteract something, you act counter — or in opposition — to it. To counteract rising global temperatures, we have to reduce the greenhouse gases flowing into the atmosphere. In order to counteract the effects of a long sleepless night, you may want to drink a cup of coffee or tea. And a good way to counteract a limited vocabulary is to learn a new word every day!
Vocabulary lists containing counteract
"Don't ban peanuts at school"
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Academic Vocabulary, Unit 3
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Part 3 Vocabulary (Unit 3)
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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:
The researchers next explored whether supplying TIMP2 could counteract some of the changes observed with age.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 18, 2026
“Cultivating adolescents’ future time perspective is therefore crucial to counteract short-form video addiction’s detrimental effects and bolster their academic buoyancy,” the study’s authors wrote.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 3, 2026
In writing history, there must be intense rigor — evidence is important and if you have evidence that should counteract any bias or hypothesis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 21, 2026
Postal Service to counteract its growing financial losses while the agency is “in the midst of the severe financial crisis amid rising operational costs.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 8, 2026
He clawed again for the copper and looped the wiring around his hand to counteract its slickness.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
This mysterious form of energy produces an outward pressure that counteracts gravity and prevents complete collapse.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 14, 2026
It tries to remove psychological and practical barriers to individual choice and counteracts beliefs or values that might dissuade people from adopting new foods.
From Salon ● Nov. 4, 2024
Gravity makes dark matter clump together, but dark energy counteracts this effect.
From New York Times ● May 23, 2024
Now, researchers report that a once-promising new drug, an antibody that counteracts a pernicious toxin in the viper’s venom, has failed in animal trials.
From Science Magazine ● Jan. 16, 2024
He did this by adding a cosmological constant, an as yet undetected force that counteracts the force of gravity.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
And one 10-second play from Friday’s Game 2 shows just how the Knicks have counteracted the player known as The Alien—by manipulating space and time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 7, 2026
Drones can also be counteracted with “kinetic” systems, which can shoot down drones.
From Barron's ● Mar. 4, 2026
In 2025, researchers at the University of Louvain and Imperial College London clarified how this harmful chain reaction might be counteracted.
From Science Daily ● Dec. 8, 2025
Taylor's worries are counteracted by career-high paydays for the female fighters on an event being broadcast on Netflix in the streaming giant's first venture into live boxing.
From BBC ● Nov. 13, 2024
The Spaniards counteracted this threat by inventing a pretext to seize the tlatoani in his own palace, making him first their captive and then their puppet.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Nor was this a case of a few rogue officials counteracting company policies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
But less well-known is sulphur pollution, which forms vast numbers of tiny particles in the air and reflects sunlight back into space, partly counteracting the warming effect of carbon.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
“The forecast is shaped by two counteracting forces,” said Asa Johansson, director of policy studies at the OECD.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
It has an inclined tourbillon, a feature aimed at improving accuracy by counteracting gravity, which adds to its rarity in the watch world.
From Salon ● Dec. 19, 2024
Slowly my starved body responded to food and overcame the lean years of Mississippi, Arkansas, and Tennessee, counteracting the flesh-sapping anxiety of fear-filled days.
From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
