counterculture

noun

coun·​ter·​cul·​ture ˈkau̇n-tər-ˌkəl-chər 

: a culture with values and mores that run counter to those of established society

countercultural

ˌkau̇n-tər-ˈkəlch-rəl, 

-ˈkəl-chə- 

adjective

counterculturalism

ˌkau̇n-tər-ˈkəlch-rə-ˌli-zəm, 

-ˈkəl-chə- 

noun

counterculturist

ˌkau̇n-tər-ˈkəl-chə-rist 

noun

Examples of counterculture in a Sentence

the counterculture of the hippies

He was part of the antiwar counterculture.

Recent Examples on the Web

Her success brought both raves and snark, but a thing that could boldly be said of her whole deal was that it was aligned with counterculture even as it was subsumed by the mainstream. —Sheldon Pearce, NPR, 9 May 2026

Back in the late ’90s and early 2000s, skateboarding was a counterculture sport; enthusiasts hassled in streets and parking lots with few safe places to shred. —Laylan Connelly, Oc Register, 8 May 2026

The couple raised $63,000 to launch the Gap in 1969 with one small store at 1950 Ocean Avenue in San Francisco, primarily selling Levi’s jeans, vinyl records and cassettes with a particular appeal to the counterculture youth of the day. —David Moin, Footwear News, 4 May 2026

In the 1960s, with the rise of the counterculture, totems became an even more widespread trope. —Glenn Adamson, Artforum, 2 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1947, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for counterculture

• agriculture
• apiculture
• aquaculture
• floriculture
• horticulture
• mariculture
• monoculture
• sericulture
• silviculture
• viticulture
• arboriculture
• culture