Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “contrary” come from?

Contrary comes from Middle English contrarie, meaning opposed or opposite in nature or direction.

contrary (English): Opposite; in an opposite direction; in...

Definitions

  1. Opposite; in an opposite direction; in...

Ancestry of “contrary”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishcontrarie—
2Old Frenchcontraire—
3Latincontrariusopposite, opposed, contrary, conflicting,...
4Latincontrā—
5Latinubī—
6Latincubī—
7Proto-Italic*kʷuðei—

Words derived from “contrary”

  • contrariwise
  • contrariness
  • contrarily
  • contrarywise
  • subcontrary
  • contraire
Every word from Proto-Italic *kʷuðei →