counterspecies

English

Etymology

From counter- +‎ species.

Noun

counterspecies (plural counterspecies)

  1. A species in opposition to another.
    • 1974, Erik H. Erikson, Dimensions of a New Identity, page 116:
      Incidentally, when bad came to very worse, all liberation movements seem to agree on one animal species that likes to wallow in mud as the appropriate counterspecies to liken the adult white male to.
    • 1993, C.S. Friedman, When True Night Falls, page 243:
      Because in order to establish a new species properly, you have to make sure it comes equipped with counterspecies: predators, parasites, diseases, degraders.
    • 1997, Thomas Mallon, Dewey Defeats Truman, page 141:
      Humanity itself might be overrated, but what if you suspected that the bulk of your life's acquaintance - all those punctually plastered guests at your parents' cocktail hours, with their indisputable skill in running the world - fell into that inhuman counterspecies to which Dewey was accused of belonging?

See also