contravene
Americanverb (used with object)
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to come or be in conflict with; go or act against; deny or oppose.
to contravene a statement.
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to violate, infringe, or transgress.
to contravene the law.
verb
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to come into conflict with or infringe (rules, laws, etc)
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to dispute or contradict (a statement, proposition, etc)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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contravenesimple
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contravenessimple
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have contravenedperfect
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has contravenedperfect
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am contraveningprogressive
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are contraveningprogressive
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is contraveningprogressive
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have been contraveningperfect progressive
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has been contraveningperfect progressive
Past
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contravenedsimple
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had contravenedperfect
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was contraveningprogressive
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were contraveningprogressive
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had been contraveningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of contravene
1560–70; < Late Latin contrāvenīre, equivalent to Latin contrā against + venīre to come
Explanation
To contravene means to go against or defy. You might contravene your parents' ban on sweets when your friend offers to share her candy because chocolate tastes too good to resist! If you contravene something in practice, you act in direct violation of a particular law or rule. Think about the times when someone has told you not to cross a line and you do anyway. You can also contravene in words though, which means you contradict or argue against a statement. Let's say you're debating gun control. If your opponent says that for the safety of all, it should be legal to carry a concealed weapon wherever you go, you might answer that the more concealed weapons there are, the more violence. You are contravening your opponent's argument.
Vocabulary lists containing contravene
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
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Against All Odds: Contra and Counter
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Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Yet, Ms. Gordon-Reed notes, Jefferson’s “actions and words in other contexts . . . contravene almost everything he has to say in the ‘Notes.’”
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026
While strictly speaking the events seem to contravene restrictions imposed on mass gatherings, they have been tolerated by the authorities.
From Barron's • Mar. 10, 2026
At the time, it was said they would reopen once a "safe environment" - which does not contravene the Taliban's strict interpretation of Islamic law - had been established.
From BBC • Jan. 23, 2026
That leads into Colorado’s second justification—that conversion therapy does indeed contravene the standard of care by subjecting minors to “discredited” quackery far more likely to harm than help.
From Slate • Oct. 7, 2025
This has been decided long ago, and the ear is deaf to any response that might possibly contravene so clear a decision.
From An Examination of President Edwards' Inquiry into the Freedom of the Will by Bledsoe, Albert Taylor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
