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Showing results for to the contrary. Search instead for to+the+contrary.
Synonyms

to the contrary

Idioms  
  1. To the opposite effect, in denial, as in No matter what they say to the contrary, I am positive that he was present. This idiom was first recorded in 1512. Also see on the contrary.


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.

Arguments to the contrary are overly cautious and pedantic.

From Slate • Mar. 29, 2026

Despite mounds of evidence to the contrary, I just can’t bring myself to believe they have all the ingredients to become just the third franchise in baseball history to three-peat.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 22, 2026

“Despite all evidence to the contrary, Marshall still believed,” in Mr. Dikötter’s words, that the Communists “were not doctrinaire ideologists, but merely rural reformers who could help shape a democratic China.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 13, 2026

He genuinely believes he can change reality simply by relentlessly stating something as fact in the face of all evidence to the contrary.

From Salon • Feb. 12, 2026

Despite a good deal of opinion to the contrary, an item whose price has been increased by 50 percent and then reduced by 50 percent has had a net reduction in price of 25 percent.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos