Word.ws English Dictionary

countertransference

UK/kaʊntətɹansˈfəːɹəns/

countertransference noun: the transference of a therapist's own unconscious feelings to their patient; unconscious or instinctive emotion felt towards the patient.

Noun

countertransference (countable and uncountable, plural countertransferences)

  1. (psychotherapy) The transference of a therapist's own unconscious feelings to their patient; unconscious or instinctive emotion felt towards the patient.
    • ‘She had a very unusual, difficult childhood. I guess, what with her history and all, she brings out these fatherly feelings of countertransference in me.’2005, Meg Wolitzer, The Position, Vintage, published 2012, page 94
    • In my meeting with Dahlia, I found myself having a private countertransference thought which I certainly did not articulate to her.2007, Brett Kahr, Sex and the Psyche, Penguin, published 2008, page 295

Forms of countertransference

pluralcountertransferences
alternative formcounter-transference

Origin of countertransference

From counter- + transference, a calque of German Gegenübertragung.

Words formed from countertransference

Questions about countertransference

What does countertransference mean?
Countertransference means the transference of a therapist's own unconscious feelings to their patient; unconscious or instinctive emotion felt towards the patient.
What part of speech is countertransference?
Countertransference is a noun.
How do you pronounce countertransference?
Countertransference is pronounced /kaʊntətɹansˈfəːɹəns/ (UK).
What is the plural of countertransference?
The plural of countertransference is countertransferences.

Words near countertransference in the dictionary

  1. countertrading
  2. countertradition
  3. countertraditional
  4. countertraditions
  5. countertrafficking
  6. countertransference
  7. countertransferences
  8. countertransferent
  9. countertransferential
  10. countertransferentially
  11. countertransport

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: countertransference (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.

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