Contranism
Contranism by Anthropologicalthinkr August 11, 2026
Urban Dictionary Merch
Your favorite words on things you can wear, drink from, read, or give to a friend.
The Urban Dictionary Store sells gifts you’ll have to explain.
contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality
A word invented by James Joyce and used in his Ulysses. The word may be broken into parts to better understand its meaning:
con-trans-magnific-and-jew-bang-tantiality
The "-tantiality" is just a suffix for "con-" and "trans-". The "con-" refers to consubstantiation, the belief in Catholic theology that the father, the son and the holy spirit are all of the same substance but each presents in a different form. The "-trans-" refers to transubstantiation, the belief in Catholic theology that during communion the bread and wine literally become the body and blood of christ; the mundane is transformed into the divine. These two first parts of the word indicate that the word has to do with the intersection between the divine (god) and the mundane (humanity), or christ. The "magnific" refers to the magnificent, the divine. The "-and-" simply refers to the word "and" and the "-jew-" refers to a Jew, specifically Mary. The "-bang-" is where things get tricky and we see a bit of Joyce's (slightly blasphemous) humour: in one sense, "-bang-" refers to a collision between the divine and Mary (christ). It also refers to sex; Mary is impregnated by the divine and out of this tryst christ is born. Joyce intentionally juxtaposes sexuality and the virgin because he both believes that all human activities are beautiful and deserve to be represented in literature and because, in order for christ to have a human mother and a divine father, he must have blood from both.
con-trans-magnific-and-jew-bang-tantiality
The "-tantiality" is just a suffix for "con-" and "trans-". The "con-" refers to consubstantiation, the belief in Catholic theology that the father, the son and the holy spirit are all of the same substance but each presents in a different form. The "-trans-" refers to transubstantiation, the belief in Catholic theology that during communion the bread and wine literally become the body and blood of christ; the mundane is transformed into the divine. These two first parts of the word indicate that the word has to do with the intersection between the divine (god) and the mundane (humanity), or christ. The "magnific" refers to the magnificent, the divine. The "-and-" simply refers to the word "and" and the "-jew-" refers to a Jew, specifically Mary. The "-bang-" is where things get tricky and we see a bit of Joyce's (slightly blasphemous) humour: in one sense, "-bang-" refers to a collision between the divine and Mary (christ). It also refers to sex; Mary is impregnated by the divine and out of this tryst christ is born. Joyce intentionally juxtaposes sexuality and the virgin because he both believes that all human activities are beautiful and deserve to be represented in literature and because, in order for christ to have a human mother and a divine father, he must have blood from both.
You: Contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality.
English Professor: You get an "A," and you don't even have to come to class anymore.
You: Contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality.
Catholic Priest: STOP READING JAMES JOYCE WE NEED TO BURN THAT FILTHY BOOK BEFORE IT POISONS MORE MINDS AND DAMNS MORE SOULS!!!
Hot Girl: What does contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality mean?
You: I better come over and explain it to you. We may even need to act it out...
English Professor: You get an "A," and you don't even have to come to class anymore.
You: Contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality.
Catholic Priest: STOP READING JAMES JOYCE WE NEED TO BURN THAT FILTHY BOOK BEFORE IT POISONS MORE MINDS AND DAMNS MORE SOULS!!!
Hot Girl: What does contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality mean?
You: I better come over and explain it to you. We may even need to act it out...
contransmagnificandjewbangtantiality by Avrilsbestguy October 2, 2011
Related Words
Cyntronism
Cyntronism by Hazma March 18, 2017
contranym
contranym by Thebestoftimestheworstoftimes September 29, 2013
contrainment
noun
1. an effort that is inconvenient
2. a factor causing trouble in achieving a positive result or tending to produce a negative result
3. a condition or state of affairs almost beyond one's ability to deal with and requiring great effort to bear or overcome
syn - difficulty
1. the fact or condition of being contrained.
2. Often, contrainments.
3. a trouble or struggle.
4. a cause of trouble, struggle, or embarrassment.
5. a disagreement or dispute.
6. reluctance; unwillingness.
7. a demur; objection.
8. something that is hard to do, understand, or surmount; an impediment or obstacle.
1. an effort that is inconvenient
2. a factor causing trouble in achieving a positive result or tending to produce a negative result
3. a condition or state of affairs almost beyond one's ability to deal with and requiring great effort to bear or overcome
syn - difficulty
1. the fact or condition of being contrained.
2. Often, contrainments.
3. a trouble or struggle.
4. a cause of trouble, struggle, or embarrassment.
5. a disagreement or dispute.
6. reluctance; unwillingness.
7. a demur; objection.
8. something that is hard to do, understand, or surmount; an impediment or obstacle.
That silly lady at the DMV was giving me some contrainments about my expired tags!
My mexican pal is trying to act white but all he does is cause us a bunch of contrainment when dealing with his ridiculous antics.
Every time I go into the salesman's office he gives me a buncha contrainment about how smart he is.
My mexican pal is trying to act white but all he does is cause us a bunch of contrainment when dealing with his ridiculous antics.
Every time I go into the salesman's office he gives me a buncha contrainment about how smart he is.
contrainment by David - TeamPSI May 11, 2007
contanister
1. A canister shaped container used to hold small objects, such as beads, marbles, etc.
2. A woman's ass that is used to hold small objects, such as beads, marbles, etc.
2. A woman's ass that is used to hold small objects, such as beads, marbles, etc.
1. I have all my beads arranged by color in separate contanisters.
2. I have all my beads arranged by color in separate contanisters.
2. I have all my beads arranged by color in separate contanisters.
contanister by Glenn Steckler January 14, 2004
Contranize
To condescendingly patronize somebody.
To make it seem like you are complimenting somebody when it is clear to everybody involved that you are making fun of them and their entire life in general.
To make it seem like you are complimenting somebody when it is clear to everybody involved that you are making fun of them and their entire life in general.
Yo yo Gio!! Are you wearing one of those douchey Affliction shirts?!?! THAT IS FUCKING AWESOME!!!!" "Damn bro, you totally just contranized the shit out of me.
Contranize by Frankenskedge June 20, 2010
More from Urban Dictionary
No Surprises Wedding
A "No Surprises Wedding," or NSW, is a wedding invitation designation that tells attendees that there can be no unplanned announcements, engagements, events or speeches at the wedding - all actions must be pre-approved by the couple. Anyone who performs an unapproved "surprise" will be asked to leave the wedding early.
This designation comes from Reddit, where so many stories of bad wedding behavior indicated a need to communicate expectations for the wedding behavior of attendees.
This designation comes from Reddit, where so many stories of bad wedding behavior indicated a need to communicate expectations for the wedding behavior of attendees.
You are cordially invited to the nuptials of Brian and Tom on October 31 at noon.
Please note that this wedding is child-free (under 10) and a No Surprises Wedding (NSW). Reach out to wedding planner Sami Smith to request approvals or exceptions; please note that exceptions will be rare. Limited child care for under-10s will be available. All approvals will be noted and included in planning. Unapproved, or surprise exceptions, will result in guests being asked to leave.
Please note that this wedding is child-free (under 10) and a No Surprises Wedding (NSW). Reach out to wedding planner Sami Smith to request approvals or exceptions; please note that exceptions will be rare. Limited child care for under-10s will be available. All approvals will be noted and included in planning. Unapproved, or surprise exceptions, will result in guests being asked to leave.
No Surprises Wedding by dbdefenestrate August 27, 2023
Word of the Day on November 8, 2026
ulzzang
Ulzzang true definition is "best & "face" = best face in korean. They are basically people with above average looks, sometimes with the use of photoshop and haduri who post their pics online, some becoming internet celebrities.
ulzzang by `r i k kit t y February 26, 2008
Word of the Day on November 7, 2026
EBK
EBK stands for "Elite Ball Knowledge." 1 In internet slang, "ball knowledge" originally referred to a deep understanding of football/soccer or basketball, but it has evolved into a broader term for having a highly sophisticated, deep, or niche understanding of any specific topic (such as music, movies, or subcultures).
Yap Trap
Yap Trap by WolfieSnack November 4, 2026
Word of the Day on November 5, 2026
Blexas
Texas is categorized as a swing state in presidential elections, but has voted for Republicans more times than for Democrats in recent history. As such, as demographics change political alignments, some Democrats believe that Texas will vote blue, or Democratic, due to their Hispanic and African American voters, who often align themselves with the Democratic Party's liberal wing.
Blexas has been cited as possible in the upcoming decades, but only if Democrats continue to win the Hispanic vote in bigger margins.
Blexas has been cited as possible in the upcoming decades, but only if Democrats continue to win the Hispanic vote in bigger margins.