Word.ws English Dictionary

against

Syllables: a·gainstUK/əˈɡɛnst//əˈɡɛnst/

against preposition: in a contrary direction to.

Preposition

against

  1. In a contrary direction to.
    • It is hard work to swim against the current.
  2. In physical opposition to; in collision with.
    • The rain pounds against the window.
    • Ivor had acquired more than a mile of fishing rights with the house ; he was not at all a good fisherman, but one must do something ; one generally, however, banged a ball with a squash-racket against a wall.1922, Michael Arlen, “3/19/2”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days
  3. In physical contact with, so as to abut or be supported by.
    • The ladder was leaning against the wall.
    • The puppy rested its head against a paw.
  4. Close to, alongside.
    • A row of trees stood against a fence.
    • We expressed our readiness, and in ten minutes were in the station wagon, rolling rapidly down the long drive, for it was then after nine.[…]As we reached the lodge we heard the whistle, and we backed up against one side of the platform as the train pulled up at the other.1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter V, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC
  5. In front of; before (a background).
    • The giant was silhouetted against the door.
  6. In contrast or comparison with.
    • There is an awesome authenticity in Barrus's voice which, I imagine, is frightening to those who must evaluate art against a one-dimensional standard of political rectitude.1986 February 15, Lars Eighner, “A Homosexual Norman Mailer?”, in Gay Community News, volume 13, number 31, page 5
    • He stands out against his classmates.
  7. In competition with, versus.
    • The Tigers will play against the Bears this weekend.
    • “[…] it is not fair of you to bring against mankind double weapons ! Dangerous enough you are as woman alone, without bringing to your aid those gifts of mind suited to problems which men have been accustomed to arrogate to themselves.”1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC
    Synonyms:
    versus
  8. Contrary to; in conflict with.
    • Doing this is against my principles.
    • It is against the law to smoke on these premises.
  9. In opposition to.
    • His mind is closed against all arguments.
    • Are you against freedom of choice?
    Antonyms:
    for
  10. Of betting odds, denoting a worse-than-even chance.
    • That horse is fifty-to-one against, so it has virtually no chance of winning.
    Antonyms:
    on
  11. In exchange for.
    • The vouchers are redeemable against West End shows and theatre breaks.
  12. As counterbalance to.
Show 5 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. As a charge on.
    • Tax is levied against income from sales.
  2. As protection from.
    • He turned the umbrella against the wind.
    • Beautie alone is a ſoveraigne remedy againſt feare,griefe,and all melancholy fits; a charm,as Peter de la Seine and many other writers affirme,a banquet it ſelfe;he gives inſtance in diſcontented Menelaus that was ſo often freed by Helenas faire face: and ʰTully, 3 Tusc. cites Epicurus as a chiefe...1638, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy. […], 5th edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] [Robert Young, Miles Flesher, and Leonard Lichfield and William Turner] for...
  3. In anticipation of; in preparation for (a particular time, event etc.).
    • The stores are kept well stocked against a time of need.
    • He wrote to a friend of his, that he lived but with browne bread and water, and entreated him to send him a piece of cheese, against [translating pour] the time he was to make a solemne feast.1603, Michel de Montaigne, chapter 11, in John Florio, transl., The Essayes […], book II, London: […] Val[entine] Simmes for Edward Blount […], →OCLC
  4. (Hollywood) To be paid now in contrast to the following amount to be paid later under specified circumstances, usually that a movie is made or has started filming.
    • The studio weren't sure the movie would ever get made, so they only paid $50,000 against $200,000. That way they wouldn't be out very much if filming never began.
    • “Hollywood noises” yielded an early $35,000 option against $100,000 if the movie was made.2011, Charles Foran, Mordecai: The Life & Times
  5. (obsolete) Exposed to.

Conjunction

against

  1. (obsolete) By the time that (something happened); before.
    • Thence she them brought into a stately Hall, / Wherein were many tables faire dispred, / And ready dight with drapets festiuall, / Against the viaundes should be ministred.1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC
    • He now gave Mrs Deborah positive orders to take the child to her own bed, and to call up a maid-servant to provide it pap, and other things, against it waked.1749, Henry Fielding, Tom Jones, Folio Society, published 1973, page 6

against meaning in Tamil, Bengali, Malayalam and Sanskrit

against in Tamil

in a contrary direction to
எதிர்க்க etirkka

against in Bengali

in opposition to
বিরুদ্ধে biruddhe

against in Malayalam

in a contrary direction to
എതിരെ etire
in physical contact with
ചേർന്ന് cēṟnnŭ

against in Sanskrit

in a contrary direction to
अभि abhí
More languagesFewer languages
against in Pashto
پر ضد për zid
against in Tagalog
kontra
against in Arabic
ضد ḍidd, ضِدّ ḍidd
against in Persian
ضد zedd, علیه 'aleyh-e
against in Vietnamese
với, chống lại

Examples of against in a sentence

  • The kennel was put against the back wall.
  • This report sets out the risks against the benefits.
  • There was no car in sight so we crossed against the red light.
  • He waged a ten-year campaign against the company that was polluting the river.
  • I'd bet against his succeeding.
  • (with implied object) Ten voted for, and three voted against.

All 40 example sentences with against

Synonyms of against

Antonyms

Forms of against

alternative poetic'gainst
alternative poeticgainst
alternative form (obsolete)againest
alternative form (obsolete)agaynest
alternative form (obsolete)agaynst
alternative form (obsolete)ageinest
alternative form (obsolete)ageinst
alternative form (obsolete)agenest
alternative form (obsolete)agenst
alternative form (obsolete)ageynest
alternative form (obsolete)ageynst
alternative form (dialectal)agin

Origin of against

Formed from Middle English ayenes, agenes, againes (“in opposition to”), a southern variant of agen, or directly from again, either way with adverbial genitive singular ending -es; the parasitic -t was added circa 1350, probably by confusion with the superlative ending -est. By surface analysis, again + -st (excrescent ending). Cognate with Saterland Frisian juun (“against”), West Frisian tsjin (“against”), Dutch tegen (“against”), German Low German gegen (“against”), German gegen (“against”), Icelandic gegn (“against”).

Words formed from against

Phrases with against

138 more phrasesFewer phrases

Questions about against

What does against mean?
Against means in a contrary direction to.
What is against in Tamil?
Against in Tamil is எதிர்க்க (etirkka). See Against meaning in Tamil.
How do you use against in a sentence?
The kennel was put against the back wall.
What part of speech is against?
Against can be a preposition or a conjunction.
How do you pronounce against?
Against is pronounced /əˈɡɛnst/ (UK).

Words near against in the dictionary

  1. againrising
  2. againsaw
  3. againsay
  4. againsaying
  5. againsays
  6. against
  7. against all expectations
  8. against all odds
  9. against nature
  10. against one's better judgment
  11. against someone's will

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: against (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-against.ogg.

Cite this entry: “against.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/against. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.