contravene
Americanverb (used with object)
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contravenes,
present (3rd person singular)
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contravened,
past participle, past
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contravening
present participle
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to come or be in conflict with; go or act against; deny or oppose.
to contravene a statement.
-
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
-
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
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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.
See Examples For:
“This represents an important victory for the principle that women who speak out about sexual abuse should not be silenced by NDAs that contravene California law,” Barnett attorney Rosengart said in the notice.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026
The executive order also seemed to contravene an 1898 Supreme Court decision that confirmed that U.S.-born children of immigrant parents are entitled to American citizenship.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 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
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
Every legal norm tells us that we must proceed in a certain way in order that we may not contravene the will of some particular men and then suffer under their power.
From Anarchism by Paul Eltzbacher
The judges said the policy contravenes three other laws passed by Parliament during the last 30 years.
From BBC ● Dec. 13, 2023
"It contravenes Indonesia’s international obligations in relation to respect and protection for freedom of thought, conscience and religion or belief, freedom of opinion and expression," he said.
From Reuters ● Sep. 20, 2023
Nissan Motors told the BBC: "Due to conduct by Johnny & Associates that contravenes our Human Rights Policy Statement, we will refrain from developing new sales promotion materials using that talent agency until further notice."
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2023
Justice is always served when a court does not allow a defendant to manipulate a federal statute to their advantage in a way that contravenes its purpose.
From Slate ● Sep. 12, 2023
Again, in the second place, if we go on to ask how Kant is misled into doing this, we see that it is because he contravenes the first implication of perception.
From Kant's Theory of Knowledge by Harold Arthur Prichard
As the stolen cash was in foreign currency, it meant that exchange control laws could also have been contravened.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
But the IOC said this contravened Games rules and, after Heraskevych refused to back down, disqualified him from competing.
From BBC ● Feb. 22, 2026
The UN and its partners said the system contravened the fundamental humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence, and that channelling desperate people into militarised zones was inherently unsafe.
From BBC ● Nov. 24, 2025
Detractors said the plan contravened Kenya’s constitution because it would place officers in unnecessary danger and was carried out without broader public dialogue or the direct authorization of the government agencies tasked with national security.
From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2024
But if we are to deal with the Cosmos we must first understand it, even if our hopes for some unearned preferential status are, in the process, contravened.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
The flight did not seek authorisation from Saudi Arabia, contravening a practice in place for a decade.
From Barron's ● Oct. 3, 2026
He sticks to beliefs even in the face of contravening evidence.
From BBC ● Aug. 4, 2026
The court listings show Southern Water has separately been charged with dozens of offences of failing to comply with or contravening an environmental permit condition between 2013 and 2017 at multiple wastewater treatment works.
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
The government keeps pushing back - its ministerial task team on migration saying this week that 40,000 illegal immigrants have been arrested so far this year for contravening the Immigration Act.
From BBC ● Jun. 16, 2026
The International Confederation of Wizards has had to fine certain nations repeatedly for contravening Clause 73.
From "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by J.K. Rowling
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