paradox

noun

par·a·dox | \ˈper-ə-ˌdäks,

ˈpa-rə-\

Definition of paradox

1 : a tenet contrary to received opinion

2a : a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true

b : a self-contradictory statement that at first seems true

c : an argument that apparently derives self-contradictory conclusions by valid deduction from acceptable premises

3 : one (such as a person, situation, or action) having seemingly contradictory qualities or phases

Synonyms Did You Know? Example Sentences Learn More about paradox

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Examples of paradox in a Sentence

For the actors, the goal was a paradox: real emotion, produced on cue. — Claudia Roth Pierpont, New Yorker, 27 Oct. 2008 Again and again, he returns in his writing to the paradox of a woman who is superior to the men around her by virtue of social class though considered inferior to them on account of her gender. — Terry Eagleton, Harper's, November 2007 She was certainly far from understanding him completely; his meaning was not at all times obvious. It was hard to see what he meant for instance by speaking of his provincial side—which was exactly the side she would have taken him most to lack. Was it a harmless paradox, intended to puzzle her? or was it the last refinement of high culture? — Henry James, The Portrait of a Lady, 1881 Mr. Guppy propounds for Mr. Smallweed's consideration the paradox that the more you drink the thirstier you are and reclines his head upon the window-sill in a state of hopeless languor. — Charles Dickens, Bleak House, 1852-53 It is a paradox that computers need maintenance so often, since they are meant to save people time. As an actor, he's a paradox—he loves being in the public eye but also deeply values and protects his privacy. a novel full of paradox

Recent Examples on the Web

The paradox of promise and peril As medical science defeats ever more diseases, even people who become seriously ill are living longer and longer. — Houston Chronicle, "How to “live long and prosper”," 7 July 2018 The flag contains paradoxes: sworn and torn, pledged and deplored, burned and raised, the flag of Norman Rockwell and David Hammons, of civil-rights marches and Ku Klux Klan rallies, of loyalty and opposition, and avowed patriotism nonetheless. — Michael D. Breidenbach, The Atlantic, "Raising the American Flag Made in China," 4 July 2018 That history creates a paradox with which native intellectuals and cultural revivalists have been wrestling at least since the Indian civil-rights movement of the 1970s. — The Economist, "Tommy Orange’s debut novel is a work of defiance and recovery," 5 July 2018 Privacy - Terms There’s a strong paradox out of Tuesday’s results. — Amy Chance, sacbee, "California Influencers: What did we learn from the June primary election, and why?," 11 June 2018 Recent work in physics suggests a resolution to the paradoxIn our experience, nothing ever really ends. — George Musser, Scientific American, "Time's End Will Be the End of Endings," 24 Jan. 2012 In an apparent paradox, except for New Zealand, the five others are based on fossil fuels. — Washington Post, "6 major wealth funds agree to encourage greener economy," 6 July 2018 At some level, this double standard reflects a difficult and possibly irresolvable paradox of campaign coverage. — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump Is Doing Same Thing He Demanded Clinton Be Locked Up For," 22 May 2018 There are two lyrics in Beyoncé’s oeuvre that sum up the paradox that makes her so astonishingly compelling. — Constance Grady, Vox, "Beyoncé is a paradox. That’s what makes her an icon.," 16 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'paradox.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.