Synonyms for ENEMY
ˈɛn ə mien·e·my

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:5.0 / 2 votes

1. enemynoun

   Synonyms:
   foe, nemesis, backfriend, adversary, unfriend

   Antonyms:
   friend, ally

2. enemynoun

   Someone who is hostile to, feels hatred towards, opposes the interests of, or intends injury to someone else.

   Synonyms:
   nemesis, unfriend, foe, adversary, backfriend

   Antonyms:
   ally, friend

3. enemynoun

   A hostile force or nation; a fighting member of such a force or nation.

   rally together against a common enemy.

   Synonyms:
   foe, adversary, nemesis, backfriend, unfriend

   Antonyms:
   friend, ally

4. enemynoun

   An alliance of such forces.

   Synonyms:
   backfriend, foe, nemesis, unfriend, adversary

   Antonyms:
   friend, ally

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:1.0 / 1 vote

1. enemy

   An enemy in private life is one who is moved by hostile feeling with active disposition to injure; but in military language all who fight on the opposite side are called enemies or collectively "the enemy," where no personal animosity may be implied; foe, which is rather a poetical and literary word, implies intensely hostile spirit and purpose. An antagonist is one who opposes and is opposed actively and with intensity of effort; an opponent, one in whom the attitude of resistance is the more prominent; a competitor, one who seeks the same object for which another is striving; antagonists in wrestling, competitors in business, opponents in debate may contend with no personal ill will; rivals in love, ambition, etc., rarely avoid inimical feeling. Adversary was formerly much used in the general sense of antagonist or opponent, but is now less common, and largely restricted to the hostile sense; an adversary is ordinarily one who not only opposes another in fact, but does so with hostile spirit, or perhaps out of pure malignity; as, the great Adversary. Compare synonyms for AMBITION.

   Synonyms:
   adversary, antagonist, competitor, foe, opponent, rival

   Antonyms:
   abettor, accessory, accomplice, ally, friend, helper, supporter

   Preposition:
   He was the enemy of my friend in the contest.

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:3.0 / 3 votes

1. enemynoun

   an opposing military force

   "the enemy attacked at dawn"

   Synonyms:
   opposition, foe, foeman

2. enemy, foe, foeman, oppositionnoun

   an armed adversary (especially a member of an opposing military force)

   "a soldier must be prepared to kill his enemies"

   Synonyms:
   resistance, foeman, foe, oppositeness, opposite, enemy, confrontation, opposition, opponent

3. enemynoun

   any hostile group of people

   "he viewed lawyers as the real enemy"

   Synonyms:
   opposition, foe, foeman

4. foe, enemynoun

   a personal enemy

   "they had been political foes for years"

   Synonyms:
   opposition, foeman, foe, enemy

Matched Categories

1. • Adversary
   • Military
   • Military Unit
   • People
   • Rival

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. enemynoun

   Synonyms:
   foe, adversary

2. enemynoun

   Synonyms:
   opponent, antagonist

3. enemynoun

   Synonyms:
   DEVIL, satan, arch-fiend

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:3.5 / 2 votes

1. enemynoun

   Synonyms:
   foe, adversary, opponent, antagonist, rival, hostile

   Associated words:
   hostile, hostility, feud, enmity, inimical, antagonism

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "enemy":

   enemies, foe, adversary, hostile, hater, n.v.a., opponent, nemesis, foes, bogey

Suggested Resources

1. enemy

   Song lyrics by enemy -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by enemy on the Lyrics.com website.

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How to use ENEMY in a sentence?

1. Vicente Lim:

   We are born to live a life which is valuable only if we live it unselfishly, not for our own gratification, nor for that of our family - but for our country. Men should not fear death, but dishonor and defeat. There is nothing more beautiful than to live and die for the defense of one's country against a common enemy. There is nothing meaner and more vile than to yield to that enemy without fighting to the last ditch.

2. William C. Hunter:

   It's too much to ask one to love his enemy. Let's compromise on forgetting him.

3. Waitman Wade Beorn:

   It makes us sound very hypocritical in countries where were trying to help them develop the same kinds of moral, ethical military behavior that we try to model, i think in many ways it encourages our enemies, enemy combatants, to behave in a similar form. If we're not abiding by our own self-professed values, then why should they ?

4. Scott Walker:

   Containment was something that might have been good during the Cold War, but we're facing an enemy in radical Islamic terrorism that's willing to take the fight to us and we need to make sure that our men and women in uniform not only have the resources to protect us and keep our country safe, but they need to have the resources to keep themselves safe.

5. Mark Hertling:

   That would have been an easy call because you are talking about large helicopters, a lot of hostages that you had to find, and a very tough mission given the distance and the enemy you were up against.