contra

See also: Contra, contrà, and contra-

English

Etymology

Ultimately from Latin contra.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɒntɹə/

Preposition

contra

1. against; contrary or opposed to; in opposition or contrast to

Synonyms

• against, anti

Antonyms

• for, pro

Translations

against, contrary or opposed to

• Bulgarian: против (bg) (protiv)
• German: gegen (de), im Gegensatz zu m, contra (de), anti, wider (de)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Tagalog: kontra

Adverb

contra (comparative more contra, superlative most contra)

1. contrary to something

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:contrarily

Translations

contrary to something

• Arabic: عَلَى اَلْعَكْس (ʕalā l-ʕaks), عَلَى اَلنَّقِيض مِن (ʕalā n-naqīḍ min), ضِد (ḍid)

  Egyptian Arabic: عكس (ʿakss), ضد (ḍeḍ)

• Bulgarian: напротив (bg) (naprotiv), наопаки (bg) (naopaki)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• German: gegen (de), im Gegensatz zu m, contra (de), gegnerisch (de), gegengesetzt, entgegengesetzt
• Romanian: împotrivă (ro), contra (ro)

Noun

contra (plural contras)

1. (business) A deal to swap goods or services.
2. (politics) A conservative; pejorative slang originally tied to Nicaraguan counter-revolutionaries.
3. (accounting) An entry (or account) that cancels another entry (or account).

   a contra position; a contra entry

   The sum for each contra account is shown in the last column.

4. (music, informal) Any of the musical instruments in the contrabass range, e.g. contrabassoon, contrabass clarinet or, especially, double bass.
5. (dance) A contra dance.
6. (obsolete, US, New England, dance) A country dance.
   • 2001. The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: North America. Garland Publishing. Ellen Koskoff (Ed.). Pg. 232.

     Folk histories record that contras were gradually displaced by the introduction of the quadrille and the new couple dances.

Translations

(business) a deal to swap goods or services

• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

(accounting) an entry (or account) that cancels another entry

• German: Gegenkonto n, Gegenbuchung f, Gegenposition f, Gegenrechnung f, Kreditseite f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

(dance) a contra dance

• German: Contra Tanz m, Kontratanz m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Verb

contra (third-person singular simple present contras, no present participle, no simple past or past participle)

1. (accounting) To undo; to reverse.

   to contra a position (an entry)

Translations

(accounting) to undo an entry

• German: zurückbuchen, ristornieren, stornieren (de)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}

Anagrams

• Cantor, Carnot, Carton, Catron, TRACON, cantor, carton, corant, craton, tracon

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Asturian

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Preposition

1. against

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Catalan

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): (Central, Balearic) [ˈkɔn.tɾə]
• IPA^(key): (Valencia) [ˈkon.tɾa]

Adverb

contra

1. against
   • 2009, Jean Grave, Les Aventures d'en Nono:

     Més endavant, va parlar contra la gent sense família

     But before, he spoke against people without family

Noun

contra m (plural contres)

1. con (disadvantage)

   Antonym: pro

Related terms

• contra-
• contrari

Further reading

• “contra” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “contra”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024
• “contra” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
• “contra” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.

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Dalmatian

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Adverb

contra

1. against

References

• Bartoli, Matteo (1906) Il Dalmatico: Resti di un’antica lingua romanza parlata da Veglia a Ragusa e sua collocazione nella Romània appenino-balcanica, Rome: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, published 2000

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Finnish

Noun

contra

1. Contra (anti-Sandinista fighter)

Declension

Inflection of contra (Kotus type 10/koira, no gradation)
nominative		contra	contrat
genitive		contran	contrien
partitive		contraa	contria
illative		contraan	contriin
		singular	plural
nominative		contra	contrat
accusative	nom.	contra	contrat
	gen.	contran
genitive		contran	contrien contrain rare
partitive		contraa	contria
inessive		contrassa	contrissa
elative		contrasta	contrista
illative		contraan	contriin
adessive		contralla	contrilla
ablative		contralta	contrilta
allative		contralle	contrille
essive		contrana	contrina
translative		contraksi	contriksi
abessive		contratta	contritta
instructive		—	contrin
comitative		See the possessive forms below.

Possessive forms of contra (Kotus type 10/koira, no gradation)

first-person singular possessor singular plural nominative contrani contrani accusative nom. contrani contrani gen. contrani genitive contrani contrieni contraini rare partitive contraani contriani inessive contrassani contrissani elative contrastani contristani illative contraani contriini adessive contrallani contrillani ablative contraltani contriltani allative contralleni contrilleni essive contranani contrinani translative contrakseni contrikseni abessive contrattani contrittani instructive — — comitative — contrineni second-person singular possessor singular plural nominative contrasi contrasi accusative nom. contrasi contrasi gen. contrasi genitive contrasi contriesi contraisi rare partitive contraasi contriasi inessive contrassasi contrissasi elative contrastasi contristasi illative contraasi contriisi adessive contrallasi contrillasi ablative contraltasi contriltasi allative contrallesi contrillesi essive contranasi contrinasi translative contraksesi contriksesi abessive contrattasi contrittasi instructive — — comitative — contrinesi first-person plural possessor singular plural nominative contramme contramme accusative nom. contramme contramme gen. contramme genitive contramme contriemme contraimme rare partitive contraamme contriamme inessive contrassamme contrissamme elative contrastamme contristamme illative contraamme contriimme adessive contrallamme contrillamme ablative contraltamme contriltamme allative contrallemme contrillemme essive contranamme contrinamme translative contraksemme contriksemme abessive contrattamme contrittamme instructive — — comitative — contrinemme second-person plural possessor singular plural nominative contranne contranne accusative nom. contranne contranne gen. contranne genitive contranne contrienne contrainne rare partitive contraanne contrianne inessive contrassanne contrissanne elative contrastanne contristanne illative contraanne contriinne adessive contrallanne contrillanne ablative contraltanne contriltanne allative contrallenne contrillenne essive contrananne contrinanne translative contraksenne contriksenne abessive contrattanne contrittanne instructive — — comitative — contrinenne third-person possessor singular plural nominative contransa contransa accusative nom. contransa contransa gen. contransa genitive contransa contriensa contrainsa rare partitive contraansa contriaan contriansa inessive contrassaan contrassansa contrissaan contrissansa elative contrastaan contrastansa contristaan contristansa illative contraansa contriinsa adessive contrallaan contrallansa contrillaan contrillansa ablative contraltaan contraltansa contriltaan contriltansa allative contralleen contrallensa contrilleen contrillensa essive contranaan contranansa contrinaan contrinansa translative contrakseen contraksensa contrikseen contriksensa abessive contrattaan contrattansa contrittaan contrittansa instructive — — comitative — contrineen contrinensa

Synonyms

• contrasissi

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French

Verb

contra

1. third-person singular past historic of contrer

Anagrams

• carton

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Galician

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Preposition

contra

1. against

Noun

contra f (plural contras)

1. (usually in the plural) shutter

Further reading

• “contra”, in Dicionario da Real Academia Galega (in Galician), A Coruña: Royal Galician Academy, since 2012

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Italian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkontra/, [ˈkon̪.t̪r̺ä]
• Hyphenation: cón‧tra
• Rhymes: -ontra

Etymology 1

From Latin contrā.

Adverb

contra

Preposition

1. Obsolete form of contro.

See also

• contrapposto

Etymology 2

Inflected form of contrare

Verb

contra

1. third-person singular present indicative of contrare
2. second-person singular imperative of contrare

Anagrams

• tronca

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Ladin

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Preposition

contra

1. against

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Latin

Etymology

From cum (older com), as in intrā from in, extrā from ex etc. Confer with the semantics of English with.

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): /ˈkon.traː/, [ˈkɔn̪t̪räː]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈkon.tra/, [ˈkɔn̪t̪rä]

Adverb

contrā

1. against
2. opposite to
3. contrary to
4. otherwise
5. in return, back

Preposition

contrā (+ accusative)

1. against
2. across from, opposite

Derived terms

• contrarius

Descendants

• Albanian: kundër
• Asturian: contra
• Catalan: contra
• Dalmatian: cuantra
• English: contra, contrary
• French: contre
• Friulian: cuintri
• Galician: contra
• Hungarian: kontra
• Italian: contro
• Ladin: contra
• Occitan: contra
• Polish: kontra
• Portuguese: contra
• Romanian: către, contra
• Sicilian: contra
• Spanish: contra
• Venetian: contra

References

• “contra”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “contra”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• contra in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• contra in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• Carl Meißner, Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎^[1], London: Macmillan and Co.
  • to contradict some one: dicere contra aliquem or aliquid (not contradicere alicui)
    
  • it is a breach of duty to..: contra officium est c. Inf.
    
  • for the advantage of the state; in the interests of the state: e re publica (opp. contra rem p.)
    
  • a thing is illegal: aliquid contra legem est
    
  • to foster revolutionary projects: contra rem publicam sentire
    
  • to be guilty of high treason: contra rem publicam facere
    
  • to conspire with some one: conspirare cum aliquo (contra aliquem)
    
  • against all law, human and divine: contra ius fasque
    
• contra in Ramminger, Johann (2016 July 16 (last accessed)) Neulateinische Wortliste: Ein Wörterbuch des Lateinischen von Petrarca bis 1700‎^[2], pre-publication website, 2005-2016

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Occitan

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Preposition

contra

1. against

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Portuguese

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kõ.tɾɐ/
• Hyphenation: con‧tra

Preposition

contra

1. against

Antonyms

• a favor
• em prol
• em favor
• em defesa

Further reading

• Template:R:Priberam

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Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French contre, Italian contra, Latin contra. Doublet of the inherited către.

Preposition

contra

1. against, versus

Adverb

contra

1. against, opposed to, opposite
2. in exchange for

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Spanish

Etymology

From Latin contra.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkontɾa/ [ˈkõn̪.t̪ɾa]

• Audio (Latin America):

  (file)

Preposition

contra

1. against, versus

   la lucha contra el prejuicio

   the fight against prejudice

Synonyms

• en oposición a

Antonyms

• a favor de

Derived terms

• contrarreforma
• contrarrevolucionario

• contratapa
• contraventana

• contra viento y marea
• en contra de

Related terms

• contrario
• encontrar

Descendants

• Hiligaynon: kontra
• Tagalog: kontra

Noun

contra m (plural contras)

1. con (disadvantage)

   Antonym: pro

Adverb

contra

1. opposite, facing

Synonyms

• en oposición a

Antonyms

• a favor de

Further reading

• Template:R:DRAE 2001

Anagrams

• cantor
• cartón

• contar
• cortan
• cratón

• tranco
• tronca