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Origin and history of contra

contra(prep., adv.)

"against, over against, opposite, on the opposite side; on the contrary, contrariwise," mid-14c., from Latin contra (prep. and adv.) "against," originally "in comparison with," ablative singular feminine of *com-teros, from Old Latin com "with, together" (see com-) + -tr, zero-degree form of the comparative suffix -ter-.

also from mid-14c.

Contra(n.)

"anti-Sandinista Nicaraguan," 1981, short for Spanish contrarrevolucionario "counter-revolutionary" (n.); see contra-. Contra was earlier used as a noun in English, directly from Latin, in the senses of "a thing which is against another" (1778); "the contrary or opposite" (1640s). Related: Contras.

also from 1981

Entries linking to contra

con(n.1, adv.)

"negation; in the negative; the arguments, arguers, or voters against a proposal" (mainly in pro and con), 1570s, short for Latin contra "against" (see contra (prep., adv.)). Compare pro (n.2).

contraband(n.)

1520s, "smuggling, illegal or prohibited traffic;" 1590s, "smuggled goods, anything by law forbidden to be imported or exported;" from French contrebande "a smuggling," from older Italian contrabando (modern contrabbando) "unlawful dealing," etymologically "contrary to proclamation," from Latin contra "against" (see contra (prep., adv.)) + Medieval Latin bannum, from Frankish *ban "a command" or some other Germanic source (see ban (v.)). As an adjective, "prohibited by law, proclamation, or treaty," 1650s. 

  • contraception
  • contradict
  • contradiction
  • contralto
  • contraposition
  • contrapuntal
  • contrariety
  • contrary
  • Contras
  • contrast
  • contravene
  • contretemps
  • control
  • controversy
  • counter
  • counterfeit
  • countermand
  • counterpart
  • See All Related Words (24)
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More to explore

contradict
1570s, "speak against, oppose" (a sense now obsolete); 1580s, "assert the contrary or opposite of," from Latin contradictus, past participle of contradicere, in classical Latin contra dicere "to speak against," from contra "against" (see contra (prep., adv.)) + dicere "to say, sp
contradiction
late 14c., "objection, opposition; hostility, mutual opposition," also "absolute inconsistency," from Old French contradiction or directly from Late Latin contradictionem (nominative contradictio) "a reply, objection, counterargument," noun of action from past-participle stem of
contralto
"voice intermediary between the soprano and the tenor, lowest female voice," 1730, contralt, from Italian contralto, from contra, from Latin contra "against, opposite" (see contra) + alto (see alto). As "person with a contralto voice," 1776; as an adjective, 1769. In medieval mu
controller
(late 13c.), Old French contrerelleor (Modern French contrôleur), from Medieval Latin contrarotulator, agent noun from *contra-rotulare...
skedaddle
Liberman says it "has no connection with any word of Greek, Irish, or Swedish, and it is not a blend" [contra De Vere]....
fairy
[contra Tolkien; for example "This maketh that ther been no fairyes" in "Wife of Bath's Tale"], perhaps via intermediate...
rote
c. 1300, "custom, habit," in phrase bi rote "by heart," a word of unknown origin, sometimes said to be connected with Old French rote "route" (see route (n.)), or from Latin rota "wheel" (see rotary), but OED calls both suggestions groundless. Meaning "a fixed or unchanging round
exercise
mid-14c., "condition of being in active operation; practice for the sake of training," from Old French exercice (13c.) "exercise, execution of power; physical or spiritual exercise," from Latin exercitium "training, physical exercise" (of soldiers, horsemen, etc.); "play;" in Med
psychedelic
occasionally psychodelic, "producing expanded consciousness through heightened awareness and feeling," 1956, of drugs, suggested by British-born Canadian psychiatrist Humphry Osmond in a letter to Aldous Huxley and used by Osmond in a scientific paper published the next year; fro
crusade
"military expedition under the banner of the cross," 1706, a respelling or replacement of croisade (1570s), from French croisade (16c.), Spanish cruzada, both from Medieval Latin cruciata, past participle of cruciare "to mark with a cross," from Latin crux (genitive crucis) "cros

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Dictionary entries near contra
  • continuum
  • contort
  • contortion
  • contortionist
  • contour
  • contra
  • contra-
  • contraband
  • contraception
  • contraceptive
  • contract
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