contraproductive

adjective

Counterproductive.

Scrabble 26

Meanings

adjectivecontraproductive (comparative more contraproductive, superlative most contraproductive)

comparative more contraproductive · superlative most contraproductive

  1. nonstandardnon-native speakers' EnglishCounterproductive.

    Underlying all this is a thread that suggests we should strive to "cooperate" with nature, and the aggression is generally contraproductive.

    1984 December 19, d.skran, “Men/Hate, Women/Love.”, in net.women (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022
    5 more examples

    Fey is for the pompous, oversensitive, ultra-elite; and thus the limp-wristed faggoty, swishing, exhibishionistic gays that are in the extreme stereotype of lifestyle that is contraproductive to evolution, let alone society.

    1996 January 17, Warren Hall, “Disney corrupting youth again”, in alt.folklore.urban (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022

    You can convert your HardDrive to FAT32 with Partition Magic 3 or higher, but FAT32 is NOT recognized by Win95(a), so it is not only useless, but contraproductive, if you don't have Win95B

    1997 June 4, Andreas Heib, “Win95 revision b”, in alt.windows95 (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022

    The point is not that he writes about beta-version. I can stand this. The point is, that he is writing unbelievable , often contraproductive stuff about beta-versions, meanwhile he critisizes me to play with CSTal. He calls MY matches ADVERTISING and his stuff or praising religiously: information.

    1997 July 29, mclane, “Chess Analysis Software”, in rec.games.chess.computer (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022

    So I think, that my point may have some value, because if Mat's memories consist mostly of sword-fighting experiences, and we assume, that they are useful in some way, they may also be contraproductive in another way. And if they have no influence alltogether, then the claim of "Unbeka", that Mat profits from them is naught.

    1998 July 29, Markus Rasch, “Of Swords and Time”, in rec.arts.sf.written.robert-jordan (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022

    And has this American any authority to give people in Germany orders? Apart from that, isn't it rather contraproductive and immature to order such things?

    1998 July 30, Ole Kreiberg, “What does this have to do with German Culture”, in soc.culture.german (Usenet), retrieved 02 May 2022

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ḱe?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*ḱóm
  3. Proto-Italic*kom
  4. Proto-Italic*kom-
  5. Proto-Italic*komteros
  6. Proto-Italic*komterād
  7. Latincontrā
  8. Englishcontra-
  9. Proto-Indo-European*per-der.?
  10. Proto-Indo-European*pér
  11. Proto-Indo-European*pró
  12. Proto-Indo-European*pro-
  13. Proto-Italic*pro-
  14. Latinprō-
  15. Proto-Indo-European*dewk-
  16. Proto-Indo-European*déwkti
  17. Proto-Italic*doukō
  18. Latindūcō
  19. Latinprōdūcō
  20. Late Latinprōductīvus
  21. Englishproductive
  22. Englishcontraproductive

From contra- + productive. Spontaneously calqued from the users' respective native language, e.g. German kontraproduktiv, Romanian contraproductiv.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

contraproductive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/contraproductive

MLA

“contraproductive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/contraproductive. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “contraproductive,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/contraproductive.

Source: contraproductive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.