against
prep
(physically)
contre
→ She leaned against him.
→ He stood the ladder against the wall.
→ She pressed her nose against the window.
He leant against the wall. Il s'est appuyé contre le mur.
(=opposed to) contre
→ He is against privatisation.
→ a march to protest against the war
→ 283 votes in favour and 29 against
I'm against nuclear testing. Je suis contre les essais nucléaires.
(=towards) contre, à l'encontre de
violence against women la violence à l'encontre des femmes
(in game, competition)
contre
→ They'll be playing against Australia.
(=compared to) par rapport à
→ Our policies have to be judged against this test.
→ Check their productivity against the agreed targets.
as against (British) contre
→ 60% of voters were in favour, as against 80% previously.
(=in contrast to)
against a blue background sur un fond bleu
an orange vase placed against a blue background un vase orange placé sur un fond bleu
(=counter to)
against the law contraire à la loi
→ It is against the law to detain you without charging you.
against the rules contraire aux règles
→ We thought cheating was against the rules.
against sb's wishes contre les vœux de qn, contre la volonté de qn
→ She married him against her parents' wishes.
against sb's advice contre l'avis de qn
→ He left hospital against the advice of doctors.
against one's will
(=unwillingly) contre son gré
→ He was forced to attend the meeting against his will.
→ They cannot detain you against your will.
(expressing a grudge)
to have sth against sb en avoir contre qn, en vouloir à qn → I think he's got something against me. → Have you got something against women, Les? to have nothing against sb ne rien avoir contre qn → I have nothing against foreigners.
▲
beat against
vt fus
[+windows] battre contre
→ The rain beat against the window.
▲
come up against
vt fus
[+resistance, difficulties] rencontrer
crime against humanity
n crime m contre l'humanité
▲
go against
vt fus
(=be unfavourable to) être défavorable à
(=be contrary to) être contraire à
▲
guard against
vi
to guard against sth protéger contre qch
→ The armed forces were on high alert to guard against any retaliation.
→ You can guard against possible allergies by choosing products formulated for sensitive skin.
→ This year's results have been excellent, but we must guard against complacency.
to guard against doing sth se garder de faire qch
→ Guard against accepting such images at face value
▲
hold against
vt sep
to hold sth against sb tenir rigueur de qch à qn
→ 'You're forgetting all the trouble he caused.' -- `He was only a boy. You're not going to hold that against him?
I don't hold it against him. Je ne lui en tiens pas rigueur.
→ He lost the case, but never held it against me.
▲
nuzzle up against
vt fus
[person] se blottir contre
[animal] frotter son nez contre
▲
offend against
vt fus
[+law, rule] contrevenir à, enfreindre
→ This would offend against the principle of fairness.
▲
pit against
vt sep
to pit sb against sb opposer qn à qn
to pit o.s. against se mesurer à
to pit one's wits against sb se mesurer à qn
→ Here is your chance to pit your wits against the experts.
to be pitted against être opposé à
→ You will be pitted against three or even four people who are just as good as you are
▲
play off against
vt sep
to play one off against the other jouer une personne contre une autre
→ Gregory would interview them, and would play one off against the other.
→ She always managed to have at least two boyfriends and used to play them off against each other
▲
pound against
vt fus
[wind, rain, waves] battre contre
→ a heavy sea pounding against rocks
▲
run up against
vt fus
[+difficulties, opposition] se heurter à
▲
turn against
vt
to turn against sb se retourner contre qn
→ Public opinion turned against Hearst.
to turn against sth se retourner contre qch
→ Workers may turn against reform
to turn sb against sb retourner qn contre qn
→ He tried to turn the children against her