counterexpectational

adjective

That goes against expectations; unexpected.

Scrabble 33
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

adjectivecounterexpectational (comparative more counterexpectational, superlative most counterexpectational)

comparative more counterexpectational · superlative most counterexpectational

  1. human sciencesThat goes against expectations; unexpected.

    For example, in Saramaccan, property items can be reduplicated to encode counterexpectational semantics.

    2018, John H. McWhorter, The Creole Debate, Cambridge University Press, page 18

Origin

From counter- + expectational.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

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

MLA

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

Chicago

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

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