The meaning of Contrary

adjective

Causing irritation or annoyance.

Usage examples:

Annoying habits

verb

Make (someone) a little angry; irritate.

Usage examples:

The decision really annoyed him

adjective

Making you feel slightly angry

Usage examples:

It's really annoying when a train is late and there's no explanation., he's got a really annoying l…

noun

A person or thing that is the direct opposite of someone or something else.

Usage examples:

Love is the antithesis of selfishness

adjective

Directly opposed or contrasted; mutually incompatible.

Usage examples:

People whose religious beliefs are antithetical to mine

adjective

Exactly the opposite of someone or something or of each other

Usage examples:

The idea that science is antithetical to the arts is wrong., birth and death are antithetical., in …

adjective

Causing difficulty; hard to do or deal with.

Usage examples:

Some awkward questions

adjective

In conflict with each other; incompatible.

Usage examples:

Rivalries and clashing interests were laid aside

verb

Meet and come into violent conflict.

Usage examples:

Soccer hooligans clashed with rival fans before the match

verb

Present participle of clash

Usage examples:

Students clashed with police after demonstrations at five universities., the government and the opp…

adjective

Incompatible or at variance; contradictory.

Usage examples:

There are conflicting accounts of what occurred

verb

Be incompatible or at variance; clash.

Usage examples:

Parents' and children's interests sometimes conflict

adjective

Relating to beliefs, needs, facts, etc. that are different and opposing

Usage examples:

Conflicting account/report two staff members will often give quite conflicting accounts of what was…

adjective

Mutually opposed or inconsistent.

Usage examples:

The two studies came to contradictory conclusions

noun

A contradictory proposition.

Usage examples:

He entitles this kind of opposition dialectical, and that of contradictories analytical.

adjective

If two or more facts, pieces of advice, etc. are contradictory, they are very different from each other

Usage examples:

I keep getting contradictory advice - some people tell me to keep it warm and some tell me to put i…

noun

Contrary opposition.

Usage examples:

Does the sentence express a sort of opposition, either contradiction or contrariety etc.?

adjective

Differing strikingly.

Usage examples:

A contrasting view

verb

Differ strikingly.

Usage examples:

His friend's success contrasted with his own failure

adjective

Very different

Usage examples:

The sudden changes at the political top have spawned two contrasting interpretations.

verb

Engage in conversation.

Usage examples:

She was withdrawn and preoccupied, hardly able to converse with her mother

noun

Conversation.

Usage examples:

His converse at such seasons was always elevating

adjective

Having characteristics which are the reverse of something else already mentioned.

Usage examples:

The only mode of change will be the slow process of growth and the converse process of decay

noun

A long flat-topped fitment across which business is conducted in a shop or bank or refreshments are served in a cafeteria.

Usage examples:

Having eaten these we were hard pressed to ignore the shop counter as we departed.

verb

Speak or act in opposition to.

Usage examples:

The second argument is more difficult to counter

adverb

In the opposite direction or in opposition to.

Usage examples:

His writing ran counter to the dominant trends of the decade

adjective

Not the same as another or each other; unlike in nature, form, or quality.

Usage examples:

You can play this game in different ways

adjective

Not the same

Usage examples:

Monet and other impressionists painted the same scene at different times of day to discover how the…

adjective

Not the same as each other; dissimilar.

Usage examples:

Widely differing circumstances

verb

Be unlike or dissimilar.

Usage examples:

The second set of data differed from the first

verb

Present participle of differ

Usage examples:

The twins look alike, but they differ in temperament., his views differ considerably from those of …

adjective

Needing much effort or skill to accomplish, deal with, or understand.

Usage examples:

She had a difficult decision to make

adjective

Not easy or simple; hard to do or to understand

Usage examples:

It’s a difficult choice, but i’ve got to decide which job is better., he’s in a difficult situation…

adjective

Refusing to obey rules or someone in authority.

Usage examples:

Larry was stern with disobedient employees

adjective

Not doing what you are told to do

Usage examples:

A disobedient child

adjective

Deliberately unhelpful; uncooperative.

Usage examples:

I think you're simply being disobliging

verb

Offend (someone) by not acting in accordance with their wishes.

Usage examples:

One didn't disoblige them if one could help it

adjective

Unwilling to help or do what you are asked to do

noun

The upper part of the human body, or the front or upper part of the body of an animal, typically separated from the rest of the body by a neck, and containing the brain, mouth, and sense organs.

Usage examples:

Whatever comes into my head

adjective

Chief; principal.

Usage examples:

The head waiter

verb

Be in the leading position on.

Usage examples:

The st george's day procession was headed by the mayor

adjective

(of two things) so different in nature as to be incapable of coexisting.

Usage examples:

She declined the offer because it was incompatible with her values

adjective

Not able to exist or work with another person or thing

Usage examples:

Any new video system that is incompatible with existing ones has little chance of success.

adjective

So different that both cannot happen, be correct, or be accepted at the same time

Usage examples:

The aims of the two partners were so fundamentally incompatible that an outside arbitrator was call…

adjective

Not in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something.

Usage examples:

The duffel coat looked incongruous with the black dress she wore underneath

adjective

Appearing strange or wrong within a particular situation

Usage examples:

Such a modern office building looks incongruous in the quaint little town.

adjective

Not staying the same throughout.

Usage examples:

The quality of the material was often inconsistent

adjective

(of ideas or statements) so different from each other that they cannot be made compatible.

Usage examples:

These two views of the economy are irreconcilable

noun

Any of two or more ideas or statements that cannot be made compatible.

Usage examples:

This, ultimately, is a play about existential resemblances and contrasts, kinships and irreconcilab…

Impossible to bring into accord

adjective

Causing a blockage or obstruction.

Usage examples:

All tubing should be cleared of obstructive algae and detritus

abbreviation

Opposite.

adjective

Anxious to prevent or put an end to; disagreeing with.

Usage examples:

He was opposed to discrimination

verb

Disagree with and attempt to prevent, especially by argument.

Usage examples:

A majority of the electorate opposed ec membership

adjective

Disagreeing with something

Usage examples:

Mom’s strongly opposed to my learning to drive., i’d prefer to go in may, as opposed to (= rather t…

adjective

In conflict or competition with someone or something.

Usage examples:

The opposing team

verb

Disagree with and attempt to prevent, especially by argument.

Usage examples:

A majority of the electorate opposed ec membership

adjective

Competing or fighting against each other

Usage examples:

Opposing factions on the committee are refusing to compromise., the article tries to show opposing …

adjective

Situated on the other or further side when seen from a specified or implicit viewpoint; facing.

Usage examples:

A crowd gathered on the opposite side of the street

noun

A person or thing that is totally different from or the reverse of someone or something else.

Usage examples:

We were opposites in temperament

adverb

In a position facing a specified or implied subject.

Usage examples:

She was sitting almost opposite

adjective

Showing a deliberate and obstinate desire to behave in a way that is unreasonable or unacceptable.

Usage examples:

Kate's perverse decision not to cooperate held good

adjective

Having the effect of being, or intended to be, the opposite of what is usually expected or considered reasonable

Usage examples:

Sometimes i think he refuses to cooperate just to be perverse., she takes perverse pleasure in shoc…

adjective

Having an obstinately uncooperative attitude towards authority or discipline.

Usage examples:

A class of recalcitrant fifteen-year-olds

noun

A person with an obstinately uncooperative attitude.

Usage examples:

A stiff-necked recalcitrant and troublemaker

adjective

Unwilling to do what you are asked or ordered to do, even if it is reasonable

Usage examples:

Tenants petitioned their recalcitrant landlord to finish repairs to their building.

adjective

Stubborn or unmanageable.

Usage examples:

His refractory pony

noun

A substance that is resistant to heat.

Usage examples:

All three minerals alter to shimmer aggregates of sericite; all three are used in the preparation o…

adjective

Not affected by a treatment, change, or process

Usage examples:

This is a chronic and disabling condition that is refractory to treatment., a refractory child

verb

Move backwards.

Usage examples:

The lorry reversed into the back of a bus

adjective

Going in or turned towards the direction opposite to that previously stated.

Usage examples:

The trend appears to be going in the reverse direction

noun

A complete change of direction or action.

Usage examples:

The gall actuates a reverse of photosynthesis

adjective

Causing one to feel bored or annoyed.

Usage examples:

Weeding is a tiresome but essential job

adjective

Tiring, annoying, or boring

Usage examples:

It’s getting a little tiresome, listening to you complain.

adjective

Causing difficulty or annoyance.

Usage examples:

Schools are removing troublesome pupils

adjective

Causing worry or anxiety

Usage examples:

The troublesome fact is that we haven’t gotten much done., his back has been troublesome for quite …

adjective

Not fitting in with the wishes or demands of others; unhelpful.

Usage examples:

That harsh, unaccommodating man had clearly loved his father

adjective

Not eager or willing to help other people, for example by changing your plans

Usage examples:

The staff in the restaurant were extremely rude and unaccommodating., i would like to take more tim…

adjective

Unwilling to help others or do what they ask.

Usage examples:

I can recall him soothing uncooperative clients on the telephone

adjective

Not helpful.

Usage examples:

Several complained that the staff were unhelpful

adjective

Not improving a difficult situation

Usage examples:

The instructions were badly written and unhelpful., i don't need any more of your unhelpful advice!…

adjective

Not guided by or based on good sense.

Usage examples:

She knew she was being unreasonable, but she resented his domesticity

adjective

Not based on or using good judgment; not fair

Usage examples:

It’s unreasonable to expect him to work every weekend., he thinks the cops acted unreasonably.

adjective

Not fair or acceptable

Usage examples:

A merchant is not required to satisfy a customer's unreasonable demands., be unreasonable for sb/st…

adjective

Causing or tending to cause annoyance, frustration, or worry.

Usage examples:

The vexatious questions posed by software copyrights

adjective

Vexatious legal complaints are not serious but are annoying to deal with

Usage examples:

70% of firms thought more employees were bringing weak and vexatious claims against their employers.

adjective

(of a bad or harmful act) intentional; deliberate.

Usage examples:

Wilful acts of damage

adjective

(of something bad) done intentionally or (of a person) determined to do exactly as you want, even if you know it is wrong

Usage examples:

The present crisis is the result of years of wilful neglect by the council., they eat huge quantiti…