anticlockwise
Translation
counterclockwise
Examples
Please turn the dial anticlockwise.
Please turn the dial counterclockwise.
It was an anticlockwise movement.
It was a counterclockwise movement.
Grammar Patterns
((as an adverb)) in a direction opposite to the way the hands of a clock move around Turn the key counterclockwise to open the lock.
((as an adjective)) ((noun)) moving in a direction opposite to the way the hands of a clock move around The planets move in a counterclockwise orbit.
Similar Words
Synonyms: counterclockwise; Antonyms: clockwise
Etymology
From the prefix 'anti-' (against) and 'clockwise' (in the direction of a clock's hands). It means 'against the clock's movement'. Note that 'counterclockwise' is more common in US English.
Memory Tips
Think 'anti-clock'. It moves against the way a clock's hands normally turn.