counternarrative

noun

coun·​ter·​nar·​ra·​tive ˌkau̇n-tər-ˈner-ə-tiv 

-ˈna-rə-

variants or counter-narrative

plural counternarratives or counter-narratives

: an alternative or contradictory narrative

Theirs was a counternarrative that contrasted starkly with the assessments of military commanders who lauded the operation as a triumph.

—Luke Mogelson

As ever, we entrust our history to scientists, sometimes governments and corporations, rather than to those who produce counter-narratives that could unsettle our place in the world.

—Sarah Cefai

Examples of counternarrative in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The counternarrative is in part animated by a series of particularly stiff sentences for the Jan. 6 defendants, including one of more than 12 years in prison handed down on Wednesday for a rioter who savagely assaulted a D.C. police officer, Michael Fanone. —Robert Draper, New York Times, 23 June 2023

Attempts to commemorate the Nakba have long been rooted in a counternarrative that connects Palestinian culture and society to their pre-1948 hometowns and villages. —Maha Nassar, The Conversation, 11 May 2023

The counternarrative also had echoes of the Jan. 6 insurrection, in which many Trump supporters blamed left-wing activists for the violence. —Elizabeth Dwoskin, Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2023

The debate is one of the last opportunities for his rivals to offer a counternarrative about his candidacy. —New York Times, 16 June 2021

Word History

Etymology

counter- + narrative entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1685, in the meaning defined above