foe

1 of 2

noun

ˈfō 

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

a foe to health

FOE

2 of 2

abbreviation

Fraternal Order of Eagles

Synonyms of foe

Noun

• enemy
• opponent

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

Since his debut in 1980, the iconic yellow has been gobbling PAC-Dots and colorful fruits while dodging his ghostly foes Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde. —Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 27 Nov. 2025

The murderous creatures of the Upside Down have breached the military zone, and begin a mass slaughter of the soldiers, who’ve underestimated their foes. —Kate Aurthur, Variety, 27 Nov. 2025

Without an easy-to-smush foe or potential voters to win over, why take the risk? —Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 27 Nov. 2025

Tennessee is 33-32 all-time versus the current Big 12 membership, including 11-9 under Barnes, who is 169-100 against such foes in his career. —Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 26 Nov. 2025

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

Phrases Containing foe

• mortal foe/rival

Rhymes for foe

• beau
• beaux
• blow
• boe
• bro
• coe
• crow
• doe
• doh
• dough
• eau
• eaux

Kids Definition

foe

noun

ˈfō 

1

: one who hates another

2

: an enemy in war