foe

1 of 2

noun

1
: one who has personal enmity for another
Embrace, embrace, my Sons! be foes no more!Alexander Pope
2
a
: an enemy in war
b
: adversary, opponent
a political foe
3
: one who opposes on principle
a foe of needless expenditures
a foe of censorship
4
: something prejudicial or injurious

FOE

2 of 2

abbreviation

Fraternal Order of Eagles

Examples of foe in a Sentence

Noun Many considered him a foe of democracy. Her ability was acknowledged by friend and foe alike.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Anyone walking into the dynamic could be friend or foe. Lauren Huff, EW.com, 12 Mar. 2024 Friend or foe? To operate a Dash Cart, shoppers must first introduce themselves to it via a phone app. Christine Kilpatrick, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2024 Israel had only seemed invincible because its most serious foes had given up. Gregg Carlstrom, Foreign Affairs, 6 Mar. 2024 In it, Reacher goes undercover to rescue an informant held by a foe from his past. Diego Ramos Bechara, Variety, 6 Mar. 2024 Perhaps more alarming for the Zags, 86 percent of their victories are against Quad 3 and Quad 4 foes (the lowest quality), compared to just 68 percent for the Gaels. Jon Wilner, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024 Baraka Okojie scored all of his career-high 19 points in the second half, and George Mason rallied past No. 16 Dayton 71-67 on Wednesday night for the first home victory over a ranked foe in program history. Ben Nuckols, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 The hits are all there — meticulous worldbuilding, magic, self-discovery, vanquishing foes — all through a romantic lens that softens the denser high fantasy elements. Scottie Andrew, CNN, 28 Feb. 2024 Set in an age when the Targaryen line still holds the Iron Throne and the memory of the last dragon has not yet passed from living memory, great destinies, powerful foes and dangerous exploits all await these improbable and incomparable friends. Erik Kain, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'foe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English fo, from Old English fāh, from fāh, adjective, hostile; akin to Old High German gifēh hostile

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of foe was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near foe

Cite this Entry

“Foe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/foe. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

foe

noun
1
: one who hates another
2
: an enemy in war

More from Merriam-Webster on foe

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