Etymology of the English word contrary
the English word
contraryderived from the Latin word
contrarius (incompatible; reversed, inverted; opponent, adversary; antagonist; opposite, contrary, in contradiction)
derived from the Latin word
contraderived from the Proto-Indo-European root
*kom (near, with, together)
Date
The earliest known usage of contrary in English dates from the 14th century.
Derivations in English
contrarian,
contrariwiseCognates
Dutch
contrair, French
contraire, German
konträr, Italian
contrario, Norwegian
konträr, Provençal
contrari, Spanish
contrario, Swedish
konträrUsage
Word found in Modern English
