Definition of enemy
enemies
1 : one that is antagonistic to another; especially : one seeking to injure, overthrow, or confound an opponent
2 : something harmful or deadly alcohol was his greatest enemy
3a : a military adversaryb : a hostile unit or force
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Examples of enemy in a Sentence
He made a lot of enemies during the course of his career.
Tradition is the enemy of progress.
Recent Examples of enemy from the Web
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U.S. forces can spend millions to kill one high-value target in Syria, where the enemy, for a few hundred dollars, can recruit ten men who flow up from entry-level positions.
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Then media outlets linked to the militias went after them, posting their pictures and calling them Baathists and enemies of Shiites.
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With a once-every-five-years Communist Party congress coming up in the fall, President Xi Jinping and his political allies don’t want to make more enemies of powerful businessmen, many of whom are already angry at China’s anti-corruption drive.
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The Purple Heart is awarded to those wounded by the enemy.
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In the books, Strong Belwas is a former fighter who serves in Daenerys’s queensguard and occasionally poops in the direction of his enemies.
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Our job was to protect the infantry from enemy tanks.
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The enemy occupies that side, and in between is No Man’s Land.
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The United States is the North’s declared enemy and the ultimate target of its nuclear arsenal.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'enemy.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of enemy
Middle English enemi, from Anglo-French, from Latin inimicus, from in- 1in- + amicus friend — more at amiable
ENEMY Defined for English Language Learners
enemy
playDefinition of enemy for English Language Learners
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: someone who hates another : someone who attacks or tries to harm another
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: something that harms or threatens someone or something
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: a group of people (such as a nation) against whom another group is fighting a war
ENEMY Defined for Kids
enemy
playDefinition of enemy for Students
enemies
1 : a person who hates another : a person who attacks or tries to harm another
2 : a country or group of people with which another country or group is at war or a person belonging to such a country or group
3 : something that harms or threatens Drought is the farmer's enemy.
Learn More about enemy
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Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for enemy Spanish Central: Translation of enemy Nglish: Translation of enemy for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of enemy for Arabic speakers
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