Link Centre Dictionary

contradictory

cont·ra·dic·tory

UK/ˌkɒntɹəˈdɪkt(ə)ɹi/ US/ˌkɑntɹəˈdɪktəɹi/ uncommon

adjective

1.

of words or propositions so related that both cannot be true and both cannot be false

  • “perfect”
  • “imperfect”
Similar
2.

that confounds or contradicts or confuses

Synonyms
3.

in disagreement

  • “the figures are at odds with our findings”
  • “contradictory attributes of unjust justice and loving vindictiveness” John Morley
4.

unable to be both true at the same time

noun

1.

two propositions are contradictories if both cannot be true (or both cannot be false) at the same time

Origin

Borrowed from Late Latin contradictorius, from Latin contradico. Equivalent to contradict + -ory.

Phrases

  • contradictory antonym

Related words

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.