Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Contrary to what intuition or common sense would indicate.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective
Contrary tointuition orcommon sense .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective contrary to what common sense would suggest
Etymologies
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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Henson last week took responsibility for the calls but said the message was "counterintuitive" -- that the calls were actually intended to motivate Ehrlich supporters to vote in the final hours before the polls closed.
Gansler files federal complaint in election robocalls episode John Wagner 2010
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In this context, being "counterintuitive" -- especially when one is doing so well outside of the traditional channels of scientific discourse -- usually amounts to little more than being just plain wrong.
Chris Mooney: If Attacking Al Gore Was a Movie, It Would be Say Anything 2008
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In a way, the name was counterintuitive, because Google wanted to strip off a lot of the decorative chrome seen in other browsers and create a sleek sports car of a browser.
In the Plex Steven Levy 2011
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In a way, the name was counterintuitive, because Google wanted to strip off a lot of the decorative chrome seen in other browsers and create a sleek sports car of a browser.
In the Plex Steven Levy 2011
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It's counterintuitive, which is one of the best ways to seize attention in these divisive days when we believe we're totally on one side and the other side is frickin 'nuts but then someone who seems to be on our side (Grist) does something that seems way out there on the other side (denouncing Earth Day), which forces us to think -- hard -- beyond sides.
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"Value investing is often counterintuitive, which is to say one has to look where the majority isn't," Wright says.
Cruise With Value 2006
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"It's sort of counterintuitive, which is interesting to me as an ecologist," Hanson said, "but as fire intensity goes up, so does the abundance of wildlife and the wildlife diversity."
The Seattle Times 2011
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Al O'Leary conceded that the union's position on the program can appear "counterintuitive" but said any educational benefit offered by the NYPD has to be formalized by a contract and extend to all members of the force.
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Instead we fall into a strange kind of counterintuitive “regressive liberalism” which seeks to highlight progressive groups which consist of previously aggrieved victim groups and their traditional hierarchal oppressors.
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Good call on the "counterintuitive" remark - gee, thanks for the backhanded compliment, bud!
Got Elk? 2008
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