different between contrary vs incongruous

English

Etymology

From Middle English contrarie, compare French contraire, from Old French contraire, from Latin contr?rius (“opposite, opposed, contrary”), from contr? (“against”).

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?k?nt???i/, /k?n?t????i/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?k?nt???i/
• Rhymes: -???i (some pronunciations)

Adjective

contrary (comparative more contrary, superlative most contrary)

1. Opposite; in an opposite direction; in opposition; adverse.
2. Opposed; contradictory; inconsistent.
   • 1837, William Whewell, History of the Inductive Sciences

     The doctrine of the earth's motion appeared to be contrary to the sacred Scripture.

3. Given to opposition; perverse; wayward.

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

contrary (comparative more contrary, superlative most contrary)

1. Contrarily

Noun

contrary (plural contraries)

1. The opposite.
2. (logic) One of a pair of propositions that cannot both be simultaneously true, though they may both be false.
   • 1725, Isaac Watts, Logick, or The Right Use of Reason in the Enquiry After Truth With a Variety of Rules to Guard

     If two universals differ in quality, they are contraries; as, every vine is a tree; no vine is a tree. These can never be both true together; but they may be both false.

Synonyms

• witherward

Derived terms

• by contraries
• on the contrary
• to the contrary

Related terms

• (logic): subcontrary
• contrarian

Translations

Verb

contrary (third-person singular simple present contraries, present participle contrarying, simple past and past participle contraried)

1. (obsolete) To oppose; to frustrate.
   • April 19 1549, Hugh Latimer, seventh sermon preached before King Edward VI

     [I was advised] not to contrary the king.
2. (obsolete) To impugn.
3. (obsolete) To contradict (someone or something).
4. (obsolete) To do the opposite of (someone or something).
5. (obsolete) To act inconsistently or perversely; to act in opposition to.
6. (obsolete) To argue; to debate; to uphold an opposite opinion.
7. (obsolete) To be self-contradictory; to become reversed.

Translations

Related terms

• contra
• counter

References

• contrary in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• contrary in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
• contrary at OneLook Dictionary Search
• John A. Simpson and Edward S. C. Weiner, editors (1989) , “contrary”, in The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd edition, Oxford: Clarendon Press, ?ISBN

English

Etymology

From Latin incongruus, from in- (“not”) + congruus (“congruent”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?n?k?n.???u.?s/, /?n?k??.??u.?s/
• (US) IPA^(key): /?n?k?n.??u.?s/, /???k??.??u.?s/

Adjective

incongruous (comparative more incongruous, superlative most incongruous)

1. Not similar or congruent; not matching or fitting in.
   • 1853, Charlotte Brontë, Villette, ch. 34:

     [P]erhaps he thought me, with my basket of summer fruit, and my lack of the dignity age confers, an incongruous figure in such a scene.

   • 1912, Jack London, A Son Of The Sun, ch. 1:

     Ardent suns had likewise tanned his face till it was swarthy as a Spaniard's. The yellow mustache appeared incongruous in the midst of such swarthiness.

   • 2014, Daniel Taylor, England and Wayne Rooney see off Scotland in their own back yard (in The Guardian, 18 November 2014)[1]

     For a few moments England toyed with the idea of making it a more difficult night than necessary. Scotland had scored a goal that seemed incongruous to the rest of their performance and, briefly, a fiercely partisan crowd sensed an improbable comeback.

2. (mathematics) Of two numbers, with respect to a third, such that their difference can not be divided by it without a remainder.

   20 and 25 are incongruous with respect to 4.

Derived terms

• incongruously
• incongruousness

Synonyms

• incongruitous

Related terms

• incongruence
• incongruent
• incongruity

Translations