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subcontrary

American  
[suhb-kon-trer-ee] / sʌbˈkɒn trɛr i /

noun

Logic.

plural

subcontraries

  1. one of two propositions that can both be true but cannot both be false.

subcontrary British  
/ sʌbˈkɒntrərɪ /

adjective

  1. (of a pair of propositions) related such that they cannot both be false at once, although they may be true together Compare contrary contradictory

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. a statement that cannot be false when a given statement is false

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of subcontrary

1595–1605; < Medieval Latin subcontrārius, Late Latin ( see sub-, contrary), originally as translation of Greek hypenantíos

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.

Two subcontrary propositions hold of the young of any animal.

From Text Book of Biology, Part 1: Vertebrata by Wells, H. G. (Herbert George)

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.