contra
/ˈkɑntɹə/preposition, adverb, noun, verb
contra is spelled C-O-N-T-R-A: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a preposition, contra means “Against; contrary or opposed to; in opposition or contrast to” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in contra?
| Letters | 6: C-O-N-T-R-A |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 2.0 times per million words; the 19,336th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is contra?
Contra appears 2.0 times per million words in written English, the 19,336th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce contra?
- UK /ˈkɒntɹə/
- US /ˈkɑntɹə/
Contra has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Wodencafe-contra.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with contra?
One word on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as contra from its last stressed vowel (/ɑntɹə/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: carton, cantor, craton.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of contra
- more contra comparative
- most contra superlative
- contras plural, present, singular, he/she/it
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does contra mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
preposition
- 1
Against; contrary or opposed to; in opposition or contrast to.
adverb
- 1
Contrary to something.
noun
- 1
A deal to swap goods or services.
- 2
derogatoryA conservative; originally tied to Nicaraguan counter-revolutionaries.
- 3
An entry (or account) that cancels another entry (or account).
a contra position; a contra entry
- 4
informalAny of the musical instruments in the contrabass range, e.g. contrabassoon, contrabass clarinet or, especially, double bass.
- 5
A contra dance.
- 6
USobsoleteA country dance.
verb
- 1
To undo; to reverse.
to contra a position (an entry)
noun
- 1
A member of any of various rightist guerrilla groups violently opposing the socialist Sandinista government of Nicaragua and secretly funded by the United States government in the 1980s.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Contra in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | gegen, im Gegensatz zu, contra, anti, wider , gegnerisch |
| Portuguese | contra |
| Spanish | contra |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does contra come from?
Ultimately from Latin contrā.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).