contrarian

[kuhn-trair-ee-uhn] / kənˈtrɛər i ən /

NOUN

one who takes an opposing view

Synonyms

STRONG

antagonist

WEAK

adversary debater opponent

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Citadel said that retail investors are increasingly contrarian by nature, and the recent selling during rallies supports this.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026

So there was no contrarian buy signal — defined as timers being more pessimistic than on at least 90% of prior trading sessions.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 9, 2026

The results show that the standard contrarian rebalancing strategy of selling winners and buying losers holds up well over time, but we are in anything but ordinary times.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

That’s Parker’s conclusion after he backtested this contrarian rebalancing strategy alongside two others: buy-and-hold and momentum-based methods, the latter with positions increased as they outperform and reduced as they underperform.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

“I hadn’t really thought about it, but I guess I was a contrarian too.”

From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez