enemy
Use Enemy in a sentence
ə noun
1.
a person who feels hatred for, fosters harmful designs against, or engages in antagonistic activities against another; an adversary or opponent.
2.
an armed foe; an opposing military force: The army attacked the enemy at dawn.
3.
a hostile nation or state.
4.
a citizen of such a state.
5.
enemies, persons, nations, etc., that are hostile to one another: Let's make up and stop being enemies.
adjective
8.
belonging to a hostile power or to any of its nationals: enemy property.
9.
Obsolete. inimical; ill-disposed.
00:10
Enemy
is always a great word to know.
So is quincunx. Does it mean:
| an arrangement of five objects, as trees, in a square or rectangle, one at each corner and one in the middle. |
| a stew of meat, vegetables, potatoes, etc. |
Origin:
1250–1300; Middle English enemi < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin inimicus unfriendly, equivalent to in- in-3 + amicus friendly, friend; see amicable
1250–1300; Middle English enemi < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin inimicus unfriendly, equivalent to in- in-3 + amicus friendly, friend; see amicable
Related forms
non·en·e·my, noun, plural non·en·e·mies.
Synonyms
1. antagonist. Enemy, foe refer to a dangerous public or personal adversary. Enemy emphasizes the idea of hostility: to overcome the enemy; a bitter enemy. Foe a more literary word, may be used interchangeably with enemy but emphasizes somewhat more the danger to be feared from such a one: deadly foe; arch foe of humankind (the Devil ).
1. antagonist. Enemy, foe refer to a dangerous public or personal adversary. Enemy emphasizes the idea of hostility: to overcome the enemy; a bitter enemy. Foe a more literary word, may be used interchangeably with enemy but emphasizes somewhat more the danger to be feared from such a one: deadly foe; arch foe of humankind (the Devil ).
Antonyms
1. friend. 2. ally.
1. friend. 2. ally.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To enemy
Collins
World English Dictionary
enemy (ˈɛnəmɪ) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl -mies | |
| 1. | a person hostile or opposed to a policy, cause, person, or group, esp one who actively tries to do damage; opponent |
| 2. | a. an armed adversary; opposing military force |
| b. (as modifier): enemy aircraft | |
| 3. | a. a hostile nation or people |
| b. (as modifier): an enemy alien | |
| 4. | something that harms or opposes; adversary: courage is the enemy of failure |
| Related: inimical | |
| [C13: from Old French enemi, from Latin inimīcus hostile, from | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
enemy
early 13c., from O.Fr. enemi, from L. inimicus, from in- "not" + amicus "friend." Most words for "personal enemy" cover also "enemy in war," but certain languages have special terms for the latter, e.g. Gk. polemioi (distinct from ekhthroi), L. hostis, originally "stranger" (distinct from inimicus),
Rus. neprijatel' (distinct from vrag). Rus. vrag (O.C.S. vragu) is cognate with Lith. vargas "misery" (see urge), and probably is related to P.Gmc. *wargoz, source of O.N. vargr "outlaw," hence "wolf;" Icel. vargur "fox," O.E. wearg "criminal, felon;" which likely were the inspirations for J.R.R. Tolkien's warg "a kind of large ferocious wolf" in "The Hobbit" (1937) and "Lord of the Rings." Related: Enemies.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
In short, those who demand perfect consistency are making the perfect the enemy of the good.
The bombing, he said, had actually made his work harder by dispersing the enemy.
Therefore, taking the head of one's enemy gives you their soul.
So don't bang your head on the office door trying to uncover what you did to create an enemy.
Nearby Words
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