counterproductive

adjective

coun·​ter·​pro·​duc·​tive ˌkau̇n-tər-prə-ˈdək-tiv How to pronounce counterproductive (audio)
Synonyms of counterproductivenext
: tending to hinder the attainment of a desired goal
… violence as a means to achieve an end is counterproductive.—W. E. Brock III

Synonyms of counterproductive

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Examples of counterproductive in a Sentence

His uncontrollable anger is very counterproductive to his attempt at saving his marriage. harsh disciplinary measures that prove to be counterproductive
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Some even warned that the ban could prove counterproductive for US robotics efforts to develop humanoid robots. — Jeremy Hsu, ArsTechnica, 29 July 2026 The media rights pooling provisions, which are intended to help women’s and Olympic sports, are seen as financially counterproductive for the SEC, which shared over $1 billion with its members in fiscal year 2025, and the Big Ten. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 28 July 2026 Relying on customer lock-in strategies is counterproductive, as the goal should be to keep your product easily accessible and well-integrated. — Mindaugas Čaplinskas, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026 OpenAI’s rogue-agent incident showed how government intervention was counterproductive to cyberdefense. — Benjamin Guggenheim, Washington Post, 27 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for counterproductive

Word History

First Known Use

1959, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of counterproductive was in 1959

Rhymes for counterproductive

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Browse Nearby Words

counterpressure
counterproductive
counterprogram
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Cite this Entry

“Counterproductive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/counterproductive. Accessed 4 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on counterproductive

Nglish: Translation of counterproductive for Spanish Speakers

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