Word of the Day

: February 6, 2015

inimical

adjective in-NIM-ih-kul

What It Means

1 : being adverse often by reason of hostility or malevolence

2 a : having the disposition of an enemy : hostile

b : reflecting or indicating hostility : unfriendly

inimical in Context

The mayor's proposal received an inimical response from members of the town council.

"Profiling and other means of applying stereotypes to certain types of persons on the basis of how they appear, as opposed to how they behave, is inimical to the very foundations of our democratic republic." - Mark T. Harris, Sacramento (California) Bee, January 3, 2015

Did You Know?

In inimical, one finds both a friend and an enemy. The word descends from Latin inimicus, which combines amicus, meaning "friend," with the negative prefix in-, meaning "not." In current English, inimical rarely describes a person, however. Instead, it is generally used to describe forces, concepts, or situations that are in some way harmful or hostile. For example, high inflation may be called inimical to economic growth. Inimicus is also an ancestor of enemy, whereas amicus gave us the much more congenial amicable (meaning "friendly" or "peaceful") and amiable (meaning "agreeable" or "friendly").