enemy
/ˈɛnəmi
/noun (plural enemies)
1A person who is actively opposed or hostile to someone or something: the traditional enemies of his tribe Nigel made many enemies this man was her sworn enemy...
- She was still my sworn enemy who was trying to tear me down in whatever way possible.
- Somehow they blamed each other, deciding their sworn enemy was the sole reason for their anger.
- Albert did his best to smile at a man who was supposed to be his enemy despite being critically ill himself.
Synonyms
foe, adversary, opponent, rival, nemesis, antagonist, combatant, challenger, competitor, opposer, hostile party;
(the enemy) the opposition, the competition, the other side, the opposing side
rare corrival, vier
1.1 (the enemy) [treated as singular or plural] A hostile nation or its armed forces, especially in time of war: the enemy shot down four helicopters [as modifier]: enemy aircraft...
- The bulk of the infantry was kept back out of range of the enemy guns, ready to counter-attack.
- Democracies are entitled to try officers and soldiers of enemy forces for war crimes.
- Not a shot had been fired and not a single Allied aircraft had attacked the enemy aircraft.
1.2A thing that harms or weakens something else: routine is the enemy of art...
- Part of my psyche is tuned to the belief that routine is the enemy of invention.
- After all, as he explains at length in his book, these three things have a common enemy in risk aversion.
- In a rather bold twist, the traditional enemy of poetry is turned into a poet himself!
Phrases
be one's own worst enemy
make an enemy of
Origin
Middle English: from Old French enemi, from Latin inimicus, from in- 'not' + amicus 'friend'.
An enemy is not your friend. So far, so obvious, but this is, in fact, the derivation of the word. It came into the language at the end of the 13th century from Old French enemi, from Latin inimicus, which was based on in- meaning ‘not’ and amicus ‘friend’. Inimicus is the source of inimical (late 17th century) or ‘hostile’, and amicus of amicable (mid 16th century) or ‘friendly’.