| contraceptive | (adjective) capable of preventing conception or impregnation | Synonyms: antifertility, prophylactic |
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| (noun) an agent or device intended to prevent conception | Synonyms: birth control device, contraceptive device, preventative, preventive, prophylactic device |
| contraclockwise | (adjective) in the direction opposite to the rotation of the hands of a clock | Synonyms: anticlockwise, counterclockwise |
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| contract | (noun) a variety of bridge in which the bidder receives points toward game only for the number of tricks he bid | Synonyms: contract bridge |
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| (noun) a binding agreement between two or more persons that is enforceable by law | - |
| (noun) (contract bridge) the highest bid becomes the contract setting the number of tricks that the bidder must make | Synonyms: declaration |
| (verb) be stricken by an illness, fall victim to an illness | Synonyms: get, take |
| (verb) make or become more narrow or restricted | Synonyms: narrow |
| (verb) become smaller or draw together | Synonyms: shrink |
| (verb) reduce in scope while retaining essential elements | Synonyms: abbreviate, abridge, cut, foreshorten, reduce, shorten |
| (verb) compress or concentrate | Synonyms: concentrate, condense |
| (verb) enter into a contractual arrangement | Synonyms: undertake |
| (verb) make smaller | - |
| (verb) squeeze or press together | Synonyms: compact, compress, constrict, press, squeeze |
| (verb) engage by written agreement | Synonyms: sign, sign on, sign up |
| contractable | (adjective) (of disease) capable of being transmitted by infection | Synonyms: catching, communicable, contagious, transmissible, transmittable |
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| contracted | (adjective) reduced in size or pulled together | - |
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| contractile | (adjective) capable of contracting or being contracted | - |
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| contractility | (noun) the capability or quality of shrinking or contracting, especially by muscle fibers and even some other forms of living matter | - |
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| contracting | (noun) becoming infected | Synonyms: catching |
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| contraction | (noun) the act of decreasing (something) in size or volume or quantity or scope | - |
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| (noun) (physiology) a shortening or tensing of a part or organ (especially of a muscle or muscle fiber) | Synonyms: muscle contraction, muscular contraction |
| (noun) a word formed from two or more words by omitting or combining some sounds | - |
| (noun) the process or result of becoming smaller or pressed together | Synonyms: compression, condensation |
| contractor | (noun) a bodily organ that contracts | Synonyms: contractile organ |
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| (noun) someone (a person or firm) who contracts to build things | - |
| (noun) (law) a party to a contract | - |
| (noun) the bridge player in contract bridge who wins the bidding and can declare which suit is to be trumps | Synonyms: declarer |
| contractual | (adjective) relating to or part of a binding legal agreement | - |
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| contractually | (adverb) by virtue of a contract | - |
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| contracture | (noun) an abnormal and usually permanent contraction of a muscle | - |
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| contradance | (noun) a type of folk dance in which couples are arranged in sets or face one another in a line | Synonyms: contra danse, contredanse, country-dance, country dancing |
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| (verb) perform a contradance | Synonyms: contra danse, contredanse, country-dance |
| contradict | (verb) prove negative; show to be false | Synonyms: negate |
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| (verb) deny the truth of | Synonyms: contravene, negate |
| (verb) be resistant to | Synonyms: controvert, oppose |
| (verb) be in contradiction with | Synonyms: belie, negate |
| contradiction | (noun) the speech act of contradicting someone | - |
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| (noun) (logic) a statement that is necessarily false | Synonyms: contradiction in terms |
| (noun) opposition between two conflicting forces or ideas | - |
| contradictorily | (adverb) in a contradictory manner | - |
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| contradictoriness | (noun) the relation that exists when opposites cannot coexist | - |
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| contradictory | (adjective) of words or propositions so related that both cannot be true and both cannot be false | - |
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| (adjective) unable for both to exist or be true at the same time | Synonyms: mutually exclusive |
| (adjective) in disagreement | Synonyms: at odds, conflicting, self-contradictory |
| (adjective) that confounds or contradicts or confuses | Synonyms: confounding |
| (noun) two propositions are contradictories if both cannot be true (or both cannot be false) at the same time | - |
| contradistinction | (noun) a distinction drawn on the basis of contrast | - |
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| contradistinguish | (verb) distinguish by contrasting qualities | - |
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| contrafagotto | (noun) the bassoon that is the largest instrument in the oboe family | Synonyms: contrabassoon, double bassoon |
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| contrail | (noun) an artificial cloud created by an aircraft; caused either by condensation due to the reduction in air pressure above the wing surface or by water vapor in the engine exhaust | Synonyms: condensation trail |
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| contraindicate | (verb) make a treatment inadvisable | - |
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| contraindication | (noun) (medicine) a reason that makes it inadvisable to prescribe a particular drug or employ a particular procedure or treatment | - |
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| contralateral | (adjective) on or relating to the opposite side (of the body) | - |
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| contralto | (adjective) of or being the lowest female voice | Synonyms: alto |
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| (noun) the lowest female singing voice | Synonyms: alto |
| (noun) a woman singer having a contralto voice | - |
| contraption | (noun) a device or control that is very useful for a particular job | Synonyms: appliance, contrivance, convenience, gadget, gismo, gizmo, widget |
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| contrapuntal | (adjective) having two or more independent but harmonically related melodic parts sounding together | Synonyms: polyphonic |
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| (adjective) relating to or characteristic of or according to the rules of counterpoint | - |
| contrapuntist | (noun) a composer who specializes in counterpoint | - |
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| contrarian | (noun) an investor who deliberately decides to go against the prevailing wisdom of other investors | - |
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| contrariety | (noun) the relation between contraries | - |
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| contrarily | (adverb) contrary to expectations | Synonyms: contrariwise, on the contrary, to the contrary |
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| (adverb) in a contrary disobedient manner | Synonyms: contrariwise, perversely |
| contrariness | (noun) a fussy and eccentric disposition | Synonyms: crankiness, crotchetiness, grumpiness |
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| (noun) deliberate and stubborn unruliness and resistance to guidance or discipline | Synonyms: perverseness, perversity |
| contrarious | (adjective) characterized by self-willed opposition | Synonyms: cross-grained |
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| contrariwise | (adverb) contrary to expectations | Synonyms: contrarily, on the contrary, to the contrary |
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| (adverb) with the order reversed | Synonyms: the other way around, vice versa |
| (adverb) in a contrary disobedient manner | Synonyms: contrarily, perversely |
| contrary | (adjective) of words or propositions so related that both cannot be true but both may be false | - |
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| (adjective) very opposed in nature or character or purpose | - |
| (adjective) resistant to guidance or discipline | Synonyms: obstinate, perverse, wayward |
| (adjective) in an opposing direction | Synonyms: adverse |
| (noun) exact opposition | - |
| (noun) a relation of direct opposition | Synonyms: opposite, reverse |
| (noun) a logical relation such that two propositions are contraries if both cannot be true but both can be false | - |
| contrast | (noun) the act of distinguishing by comparing differences | - |
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| (noun) the range of optical density and tone on a photographic negative or print (or the extent to which adjacent areas on a television screen differ in brightness) | - |
| (noun) the perceptual effect of the juxtaposition of very different colors | - |
| (noun) a conceptual separation or distinction | Synonyms: demarcation, dividing line, line |
| (noun) the opposition or dissimilarity of things that are compared | Synonyms: direct contrast |
| (verb) put in opposition to show or emphasize differences | - |
| (verb) to show differences when compared; be different | Synonyms: counterpoint |
| contrasting | (adjective) strikingly different; tending to contrast | Synonyms: contrastive |
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| contrastingly | (adverb) in a contrasting manner | - |
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| contrastive | (adjective) of words so related that one contrasts with the other | Synonyms: incompatible |
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| (adjective) strikingly different; tending to contrast | Synonyms: contrasting |
| (adjective) syntactically establishing a relation of contrast between sentences or elements of a sentence | - |
| contrasty | (adjective) having sharp differences between black and white | - |
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| contravallation | (noun) a fortification build around a sieged target by the besiegers to prevent attacks by the defenders. | - |
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| contravene | (verb) deny the truth of | Synonyms: contradict, negate |
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| (verb) go against, as of rules and laws | Synonyms: conflict, infringe, run afoul |
| contravention | (noun) coming into conflict with | Synonyms: dispute |
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| contredanse | (noun) a type of folk dance in which couples are arranged in sets or face one another in a line | Synonyms: contra danse, contradance, country-dance, country dancing |
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| (verb) perform a contradance | Synonyms: contra danse, contradance, country-dance |
| contretemps | (noun) an awkward clash | - |
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| contribute | (verb) contribute to some cause | Synonyms: chip in, give, kick in |
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| (verb) bestow a quality on | Synonyms: add, bestow, bring, impart, lend |
| (verb) provide | Synonyms: put up |
| (verb) be conducive to | Synonyms: conduce, lead |
| contributing | (adjective) tending to bring about; being partly responsible for | Synonyms: conducive, contributive, contributory, tributary |
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| contribution | (noun) act of giving in common with others for a common purpose especially to a charity | Synonyms: donation |
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| (noun) a writing for publication especially one of a collection of writings as an article or story | - |
| (noun) the effort contributed by a person in bringing about a result | Synonyms: part, share |
| (noun) a voluntary gift (as of money or service or ideas) made to some worthwhile cause | Synonyms: donation |
| (noun) an amount of money contributed | - |
| contributive | (adjective) tending to bring about; being partly responsible for | Synonyms: conducive, contributing, contributory, tributary |
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| contributor | (noun) someone who contributes (or promises to contribute) a sum of money | Synonyms: subscriber |
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| (noun) a writer whose work is published in a newspaper or magazine or as part of a book | - |
| contributory | (adjective) tending to bring about; being partly responsible for | Synonyms: conducive, contributing, contributive, tributary |
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| contrite | (adjective) feeling or expressing pain or sorrow for sins or offenses | Synonyms: remorseful, rueful, ruthful |
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| contritely | (adverb) in a rueful manner | Synonyms: remorsefully, ruefully |
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| contriteness | (noun) sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation | Synonyms: attrition, contrition |
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| contrition | (noun) sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation | Synonyms: attrition, contriteness |
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| contrivance | (noun) the act of devising something | Synonyms: devisal |
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| (noun) a device or control that is very useful for a particular job | Synonyms: appliance, contraption, convenience, gadget, gismo, gizmo, widget |
| (noun) any improvised arrangement for temporary use | Synonyms: lash-up |
| (noun) an elaborate or deceitful scheme contrived to deceive or evade | Synonyms: dodge, stratagem |
| (noun) the faculty of contriving; inventive skill | - |
| (noun) an artificial or unnatural or obviously contrived arrangement of details or parts etc. | - |
| contrive | (verb) come up with (an idea, plan, explanation, theory, or principle) after a mental effort | Synonyms: devise, excogitate, forge, formulate, invent |
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| (verb) make or work out a plan for; devise | Synonyms: design, plan, project |
| (verb) put or send forth | Synonyms: cast, project, throw |
| contrived | (adjective) artificially formal | Synonyms: artificial, hokey, stilted |
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| (adjective) showing effects of planning or manipulation | - |
| contriver | (noun) a person who makes plans | Synonyms: deviser, planner |
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| control | (noun) the activity of managing or exerting control over something | - |
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| (noun) (physiology) regulation or maintenance of a function or action or reflex etc | - |
| (noun) a mechanism that controls the operation of a machine | Synonyms: controller |
| (noun) power to direct or determine | - |
| (noun) discipline in personal and social activities | Synonyms: restraint |
| (noun) great skillfulness and knowledge of some subject or activity | Synonyms: command, mastery |
| (noun) a standard against which other conditions can be compared in a scientific experiment | Synonyms: control condition |
| (noun) the economic policy of controlling or limiting or curbing prices or wages etc. | - |
| (noun) a spiritual agency that is assumed to assist the medium during a seance | - |
| (noun) a relation of constraint of one entity (thing or person or group) by another | - |
| (noun) the state that exists when one person or group has power over another | Synonyms: ascendance, ascendancy, ascendence, ascendency, dominance |
| (verb) have a firm understanding or knowledge of; be on top of | Synonyms: master |
| (verb) be careful or certain to do something; make certain of something | Synonyms: ascertain, assure, check, ensure, insure, see, see to it |
| (verb) verify by using a duplicate register for comparison | - |
| (verb) handle and cause to function | Synonyms: operate |
| (verb) maintain influence over (others or oneself) skillfully, usually to one's advantage | Synonyms: keep in line, manipulate |
| (verb) exercise authoritative control or power over | Synonyms: command |
| (verb) lessen the intensity of; temper; hold in restraint; hold or keep within limits | Synonyms: check, contain, curb, hold, hold in, moderate |
| (verb) check or regulate (a scientific experiment) by conducting a parallel experiment or comparing with another standard | Synonyms: verify |
| (verb) place under restrictions; limit access to by law | Synonyms: restrict |
| controllable | (adjective) capable of being controlled | Synonyms: governable |
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| controlled | (adjective) restrained or managed or kept within certain bounds | - |
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| controller | (noun) a mechanism that controls the operation of a machine | Synonyms: control |
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| (noun) someone who maintains and audits business accounts | Synonyms: accountant, comptroller |
| (noun) a person who directs and restrains | Synonyms: restrainer |
| controllership | (noun) the position of controller | - |
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| controlling | (adjective) able to control or determine policy | - |
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| controversial | (adjective) marked by or capable of arousing controversy | - |
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| controversialist | (noun) a person who disputes; who is good at or enjoys controversy | Synonyms: disputant, eristic |
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| controversially | (adverb) involving controversy | Synonyms: polemically |
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| controversy | (noun) a contentious speech act; a dispute where there is strong disagreement | Synonyms: arguing, argument, contention, contestation, disceptation, disputation, tilt |
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| controvert | (verb) prove to be false or incorrect | Synonyms: rebut, refute |
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| (verb) be resistant to | Synonyms: contradict, oppose |
| contumacious | (adjective) wilfully obstinate; stubbornly disobedient | - |
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| contumaciously | (adverb) in a rebellious manner | Synonyms: defiantly, rebelliously |
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| contumacy | (noun) willful refusal to appear before a court or comply with a court order; can result in a finding of contempt of court | - |
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| (noun) obstinate rebelliousness and insubordination; resistance to authority | - |
| contumelious | (adjective) arrogantly insolent | - |
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| contumeliously | (adverb) without respect; in a disdainful manner | Synonyms: contemptuously, disdainfully, scornfully |
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| contumely | (noun) a rude expression intended to offend or hurt | Synonyms: abuse, insult, revilement, vilification |
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| contuse | (verb) injure the underlying soft tissue or bone of | Synonyms: bruise |
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| contusion | (noun) the action of bruising | - |
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| (noun) an injury that doesn't break the skin but results in some discoloration | Synonyms: bruise |