on the contrary

American  

phrase

1. the opposite is true; not at all; by no means (often used as an interjection).

2. (used to introduce a statement contradictory or opposing to a previous one).

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on the contrary Idioms  

1. It's the opposite, as in Is his shoulder hurting?—On the contrary, it's all better, or We thought you didn't like opera.—On the contrary, I love it. This phrase, at first put as by or for or in the contrary, dates from the late 1300s; on has been used since the mid-1800s.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

on the contrary

Asked whether he expected the situation to improve, Blume said "on the contrary, we have to assume that risks will get worse, worldwide".

From Barron's ● Aug. 23, 2026

The news, on the contrary, helps prove that we can’t.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 25, 2026

This climb, on the contrary, benefits from the attributes of individual students.

From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026

“It is not a great disproportion between ourselves and others which produces envy, but on the contrary, a proximity,” wrote David Hume, the 18th-century philosopher and economist.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 5, 2025

It means that in principle, then, we are not ruled by mysterious, unpredictable forces, but that, on the contrary, we can in principle control everything by means of calculation.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Related Words

• individually
• negatively
• separately
• variously