"Contra-" usually means "against," and to contradict is to go against or say the opposite of what someone else is doing or saying. Sometimes to contradict is to frustrate with words, like when one person says "The sky is blue" and another says "No, it's azure."

Denying or distorting the truth is a big part of trying to contradict. It can be harmless verbal back-and-forth, like when a husband and wife disagree just to disagree, or contradict each other to make a humorous point, but at other times people contradict something to make another person look like a liar. Often, a person who has lied will later contradict himself by saying something different from what he said earlier — and sometimes the two sides contradict each other, and neither is actually right.

Definitions of contradict

v prove negative; show to be false

affirm, confirm, corroborate, substantiate, support, sustain
establish or strengthen as with new evidence or facts
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invalidate, nullify
show to be invalid
confute, disprove
prove to be false
controvert, rebut, refute
prove to be false or incorrect
prove false
Type of:
demonstrate, establish, prove, shew, show

v deny the truth of

contravene, negate
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declare untrue; contradict
make a disclaimer about
reject as untrue, unfounded, or unjust
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differ, disagree, dissent, take issue
be of different opinions

v be in contradiction with

belie, negate
Type of:
depart, deviate, diverge, vary
be at variance with; be out of line with

v be resistant to

controvert, oppose
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blackball, negative, veto
vote against; refuse to endorse; refuse to assent
dissent, protest, resist
express opposition through action or words
strike, walk out
stop work in order to press demands
defeat, kill, shoot down, vote down, vote out
thwart the passage of
demonstrate, march
march in protest; take part in a demonstration
arise, rebel, rise, rise up
take part in a rebellion; renounce a former allegiance
rebel, renegade
break with established customs
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rebut, refute
overthrow by argument, evidence, or proof