# contradict

/ˌkɑntɹəˈdɪkt/ (US) · /kˌɒntɹədˈɪkt/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/contradict
Updated: 2026-08-08

## Senses

### 1. to deny a statement

verb · CEFR B2

to say that a statement is not true or that someone is wrong.

For teachers: to assert the opposite of a statement made by another; to deny the validity of an assertion.

- I didn't want to contradict my boss in front of the whole team.
- The witness began to contradict her previous testimony under cross-examination, leading the jury to doubt her overall credibility.

### 2. to be inconsistent with

verb · CEFR B2 · Academic

when two facts or ideas are so different that they cannot both be true.

For teachers: to be logically inconsistent with something else so that both cannot be true simultaneously.

- The new evidence seems to contradict everything we thought we knew.
- The results of the second study directly contradict the initial hypothesis, suggesting that the environmental factors were more significant than first assumed.

### 3. to say conflicting things

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to say something that is the opposite of what you said before.

For teachers: to make statements that are mutually exclusive; often used reflexively to indicate a speaker's lack of consistency.

- The politician contradicted himself several times during the long interview.
- By claiming to support fiscal responsibility while proposing massive spending increases, the candidate appeared to contradict himself on a fundamental level.

## Examples

- The two witnesses contradict each other.
- The new evidence seems to contradict the theory that the scientists published last year.
- While the CEO claims the company is thriving, the internal financial reports flatly contradict his optimistic public statements, revealing a significant deficit.

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