counterintuitive
adjective
coun·ter·in·tu·i·tive
ˌkau̇n-tər-in-ˈtü-ə-tiv 
-ˈtyü-
: contrary to what one would intuitively expect
As counterintuitive as it may seem, the universe has no center, and it has no boundary.—
Jim Bell
Jim BellExamples of counterintuitive in a Sentence
It may seem counterintuitive, but we do burn calories when we are sleeping.
Recent Examples on the Web
The advice may seem counterintuitive coming from Ferriss — an early investor in companies like Uber, Facebook and Twitter — who also says that intense focus boosts productivity and is a common trait of successful people.
—Tom Huddleston Jr., CNBC, 25 June 2025
These results might seem a bit counterintuitive, considering that games running on SteamOS must go through a Proton translation layer for every native Windows instruction in a game's code.
—ArsTechnica, 25 June 2025
Navigating today’s politics can be tricky and may seem counterintuitive.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 June 2025
While the trajectory-bending part seems obvious enough, that speed-up-or-slow-down part is pretty counterintuitive.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 19 June 2025
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Tom Huddleston Jr., CNBC, 25 June 2025
These results might seem a bit counterintuitive, considering that games running on SteamOS must go through a Proton translation layer for every native Windows instruction in a game's code.
—ArsTechnica, 25 June 2025
Navigating today’s politics can be tricky and may seem counterintuitive.
—Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 June 2025
While the trajectory-bending part seems obvious enough, that speed-up-or-slow-down part is pretty counterintuitive.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 19 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for counterintuitive
Cite this Entry
“Counterintuitive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/counterintuitive. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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