contradictory

American  

[kon-truh-dik-tuh-ree] / ˌkɒn trəˈdɪk tə ri /

adjective

1. asserting the contrary or opposite; contradicting; inconsistent; logically opposite.

   contradictory statements.

   Synonyms:

   paradoxical, irreconcilable

2. tending or inclined to contradict.

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noun

• contradictories
  plural

1. Logic. a proposition so related to a second that it is impossible for both to be true or both to be false.

contradictory British  

/ ˌkɒntrəˈdɪktərɪ /

adjective

1. inconsistent; incompatible

2. given to argument and contention

   a contradictory person

3. logic (of a pair of statements) unable both to be true or both to be false under the same circumstances Compare contrary subcontrary

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noun

1. logic a statement that cannot be true when a given statement is true or false when it is false

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• contradictoriness
  noun
• intercontradictory
  adjective
• noncontradictory
  adjective
• uncontradictory
  adjective
• contradictorily
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• contradictories
  plural

Etymology

Origin of contradictory

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Late Latin contrādictōrius; equivalent to contradict + -ory ¹

Explanation

A contradictory statement is one that says two things that cannot both be true. An example: My sister is jealous of me because I'm an only child. Contradictory is related to the verb contradict, which means to say or do the opposite, and contrary, which means to take an opposite view. When witnesses give contradictory accounts of crimes—one saying the assailant had a knife and the other a gun—police officers often assume that at least one of the witnesses is lying.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

contradictory contradictories

These contradictory impressions persist in the new production of “Waiting in the Wings,” running in repertory at Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum through Oct.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

Mr. Morris said in a statement that such music “happens to be vast, contradictory, and full of invention, so there’s plenty to work with.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026

"Markets are once again being forced to trade two seemingly contradictory stories on the same screen," said Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management.

From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026

The researchers say these seemingly contradictory cosmological puzzles may actually point toward the same conclusion.

From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026

I'm still thinking about the tying of love and truth—and it makes me want to tell her the truth—the whole, contradictory truth—because otherwise, on some level, am I not that girl?

From "Will Grayson, Will Grayson" by John Green and David Levithan

Reformation and revolution are "contraries" though not perhaps "contradictories."

From Rebuilding Britain A Survey of Problems of Reconstruction After the World War by Sir Alfred Hopkinson

Co-ordinate Species, when positive, have the least contrariety; but there are also opposites, namely, negatives, contradictories and fuller contraries.

From Logic Deductive and Inductive by Carveth Read

The animal and the spiritual are not contradictories; they are the complements in the perfect character; and in the middle ages, as in all ages of genuine earnestness, they interfused and penetrated each other.

From Short Studies on Great Subjects by James Anthony Froude

The distinction between Positive and Negative terms is not of much value in Logic, what importance would else attach to it being absorbed by the more definite distinction of contradictories.

From Logic Deductive and Inductive by Carveth Read

Without an authoritative Logical Dictionary to refer to, where all contradictories, synonyms, and contraries may be found on record, Formal Logic will hardly sanction the free play of common sense.

From Logic Deductive and Inductive by Carveth Read

Related Words

• antithetical
• conflicting
• contrary
• incompatible
• inconsistent
• paradoxical