hostile
adjective
hos·tile
ˈhä-stᵊl 
-ˌstī(-ə)l
-ˌstī(-ə)l
1
a
: of or relating to an enemy
hostile fire
b
: marked by malevolence : having or showing unfriendly feelings
a hostile act
c
: openly opposed or resisting
a hostile critic
hostile to new ideas
d(1)
: not hospitable
plants growing in a hostile environment
(2)
: having an intimidating, antagonistic, or offensive nature
a hostile workplace
2
a
: of or relating to the opposing party in a legal controversy
a hostile witness
b
: adverse to the interests of a property owner or corporation management
a hostile takeover
hostile
noun
Examples of hostile in a Sentence
Dugoni, a lawyer who coauthored a nonfiction book about an Idaho worker brain-damaged in 1996 by cyanide fumes, opens his debut novel with a wrongful death attorney in San Francisco, David Sloane, about to make his closing remarks defending a corporation in a similar case. Sloane, who has won 14 cases in a row, hates his arrogant client and must face an obviously hostile jury.
—
Publishers Weekly, 9 Jan. 2006
Relations with neighboring societies may be intermittently or chronically hostile. A society may be able to hold off its enemies as long as it is strong, only to succumb when it becomes weakened for any reason, including environmental damage.
—Jared M. Diamond, Collapse, 2005
I do not want a hostile relationship with my surgeon. But it's obvious he's pigeonholed me into the last of the four patient categories that doctors use when writing a case history: young, middle-aged, senior, elderly.
—Sylvia Simmons, Newsweek, 10 June 2002
Even when one is inside a climate-controlled spacecraft, sheltered from the deadly vacuum outside, space is a hostile setting. Terrestrial organisms venturing off the planet face a number of threats, chief among them cosmic radiation and the near absence of gravity.
—Kenneth S. Kosik, Air & Space, June/July 2001
Lotus Development Corp. succumbed to a sweetened offer of $3.52 billion, or $64 a share, from International Business Machines Corp. in one of the fastest capitulations ever in a hostile takeover. A marathon week of negotiations, which began shortly after IBM unveiled a surprise bid of $60 a share for Lotus last Monday, ended yesterday with the signing of a definitive agreement.
—Laurie Hays et al., Wall Street Journal, 12 June 1995
While the stereotype of the tortured artist brooding alone in a drafty garret may be an exaggeration, artists of all kinds—painters, musicians, poets, singers—often find themselves struggling to cope in a … world downright hostile to their work. Financial hardships, loneliness, family members who nag them to get "real" jobs, and their own self-destructive attitudes and habits can block creativity and prevent artists from pursuing their vision.
—New Age Journal, Winter 1995
They were entering hostile territory.
Her suggestions were given a hostile reception.
It was a small town that was hostile to outsiders.
The camel is specially adapted to its hostile desert habitat.
Publishers Weekly, 9 Jan. 2006
Relations with neighboring societies may be intermittently or chronically hostile. A society may be able to hold off its enemies as long as it is strong, only to succumb when it becomes weakened for any reason, including environmental damage.
—Jared M. Diamond, Collapse, 2005
I do not want a hostile relationship with my surgeon. But it's obvious he's pigeonholed me into the last of the four patient categories that doctors use when writing a case history: young, middle-aged, senior, elderly.
—Sylvia Simmons, Newsweek, 10 June 2002
Even when one is inside a climate-controlled spacecraft, sheltered from the deadly vacuum outside, space is a hostile setting. Terrestrial organisms venturing off the planet face a number of threats, chief among them cosmic radiation and the near absence of gravity.
—Kenneth S. Kosik, Air & Space, June/July 2001
Lotus Development Corp. succumbed to a sweetened offer of $3.52 billion, or $64 a share, from International Business Machines Corp. in one of the fastest capitulations ever in a hostile takeover. A marathon week of negotiations, which began shortly after IBM unveiled a surprise bid of $60 a share for Lotus last Monday, ended yesterday with the signing of a definitive agreement.
—Laurie Hays et al., Wall Street Journal, 12 June 1995
While the stereotype of the tortured artist brooding alone in a drafty garret may be an exaggeration, artists of all kinds—painters, musicians, poets, singers—often find themselves struggling to cope in a … world downright hostile to their work. Financial hardships, loneliness, family members who nag them to get "real" jobs, and their own self-destructive attitudes and habits can block creativity and prevent artists from pursuing their vision.
—New Age Journal, Winter 1995
They were entering hostile territory.
Her suggestions were given a hostile reception.
It was a small town that was hostile to outsiders.
The camel is specially adapted to its hostile desert habitat.
Recent Examples on the Web
These are two Super Bowl contenders, and the stage is set for a hostile environment in Orchard Park, New York.
—Scott Chasen, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2025
Heading into a hostile environment at the Rogers Centre, the Dodgers must defeat the Toronto Blue Jays in Games 6 and 7 to clinch their second-straight World Series title.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
Plot details are very hazy, but the word on the street is that the story centers on a ne’er-do-well smuggler who finds himself in the middle of a deadly double-cross while on a job in the Caribbean Sea, resulting in him surrounded by bodies, hostile mercenaries and thirsty sharks alike.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 31 Oct. 2025
As the New York mayor’s race approaches, The Times of London has accelerated its push for more, and largely hostile, coverage of Mamdani.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostile
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Scott Chasen, Kansas City Star, 2 Nov. 2025
Heading into a hostile environment at the Rogers Centre, the Dodgers must defeat the Toronto Blue Jays in Games 6 and 7 to clinch their second-straight World Series title.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
Plot details are very hazy, but the word on the street is that the story centers on a ne’er-do-well smuggler who finds himself in the middle of a deadly double-cross while on a job in the Caribbean Sea, resulting in him surrounded by bodies, hostile mercenaries and thirsty sharks alike.
—Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 31 Oct. 2025
As the New York mayor’s race approaches, The Times of London has accelerated its push for more, and largely hostile, coverage of Mamdani.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostile
Cite this Entry
“Hostile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hostile. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
1
: of or relating to an enemy
hostile troops
2
: showing open resistance or opposition
a hostile critic
hostile to new things
3
: not hospitable : forbidding
a hostile environment
Etymology
from early French hostile or Latin hostilis, both meaning "hostile," from Latin hostis "stranger, enemy" — related to hospital, host entry 1
Legal Definition
hostile
adjective
hos·tile
1
: having an intimidating, antagonistic, or offensive nature
a hostile work environment
2
a
: of or relating to an opposing party in a legal action
a hostile claim
b
: adverse to the interests of a party to a legal action
if the interests of the party joined involuntarily render him hostile to the original plaintiff, he must remain a defendant—J. H. Friedenthal et al.
J. H. Friedenthal et al.3
a
: adverse to or incompatible with the interests of a property owner
a hostile use
see also adverse possession at possession, easement by prescription at easement, prescription sense 1
b
: unwelcome by or contrary to the interests of corporate stockholders or management
a hostile takeover bid
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