opponent

noun

op·po·nent | \ ə-ˈpō-nənt

Definition of opponent

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : one that takes an opposite position (as in a debate, contest, or conflict) She is a formidable opponent in the race for senator. opponents of the war

2 : a muscle that opposes or counteracts and limits the action of another

opponent

adjective

Definition of opponent (Entry 2 of 2)

1 : antagonistic, opposing

2 : situated in front

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Synonyms for opponent

Synonyms: Noun

adversary, antagonist, foe, rival

Examples of opponent in a Sentence

Noun

She is a formidable opponent in the race for senator. The team's opponents have not lost a game this season. He knocked out his opponent in the third round.

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Comparisons with current opponents became sufficiently boring that by midseason a more interesting question had arisen: Is this the greatest college football team ever assembled? — Brian Costa, WSJ, "Alabama Beats Oklahoma, Will Face Clemson for College Football National Title," 30 Dec. 2018 Hatch has also clashed with opponents in recent years. — Brady Mccombs, The Seattle Times, "Hatch laments loss of civility for US Senate in ‘crisis’," 12 Dec. 2018 Kemp's opponent, Stacey Abrams, refuses to concede until all remaining votes are counted in that very close contest. — Bree Newsome, SELF, "The 2018 Midterm Elections Proved That Change Must Happen from the Ground Up," 15 Nov. 2018 Brutally honest, outspoken and fearless Goes with their gut, never favors appearance 'Cause who has time for vanity with opponents to extinguish? — Halsey, Glamour, "Halsey Has a Poem With a Powerful Message for All Women: 'Be Inconvenient'," 11 Nov. 2018 Another must-win—Democrat Claire McCaskill is neck and neck with her opponent, Republican Attorney General Josh Hawley. — Lynn Yaeger, Vogue, "The Midterm Elections Are Almost Here—What You Need to Know Now," 5 Nov. 2018 The fake profiles were created in June and July and appear to have been dedicated solely to pushing positive messages about Ayyadurai, attacking his opponents, or engaging in flame wars with people on Facebook who don’t support him. — Casey Newton, The Verge, "There’s a crack at the heart of Facebook’s advertising business," 4 Oct. 2018 So future tanks will become more difficult for enemies to detect, playing a cat and mouse game with their opponents by reducing their acoustic, radar, and infrared signatures. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "Stealth Tanks Are Coming," 7 Aug. 2018 An ingredient that the Bucks include in their matches better than any other tag team in the world is a seemingly instant chemistry with their opponents. — Justin Barrasso, SI.com, "Takeaways From New Japan, WWE and UFC After a Night in July That Changed the Business," 8 July 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

The Colts rank fourth in the NFL in opponent kickoff-return average, a product of Sanchez’s savvy as a kickoff specialist. — Stephen Holder, Indianapolis Star, "Colts' thumbs up, down: Jack Doyle, Jabaal Sheard starred this season," 1 Jan. 2018 The Lady Rams sank 85.7% (6-7) of their free throws and lost a Badgers-opponent season-high 26 turnovers to a season-high 14 steals by SHC. — Spring Hill College Athletics, AL.com, "Spring Hill women continue to roll with 73-46 win over Mobile," 24 Jan. 2018 Milwaukee has cut opponent three-point attempts from 27.4 per game in the first 18 contests to 23.3 in the past seven. — Matt Velazquez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Bucks are on a roll since getting back to basics in Berkeley," 10 Dec. 2017 His style is more along the lines of Floyd Mayweather Jr. — avoid contact, make the opponent look bad and win on points — which, to fans who thrive on continuous action and massive fistic exchanges, does not sit well. — Bob Velin, USA TODAY, "Lomachenko vs. Rigondeaux: Historic fight with great expectations," 8 Dec. 2017 Another highlight on the slate is a trip to Tuscon, Ariz., to play Pac-12 opponent Arizona on Dec. 3. — Tod Leonard, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Bahamas trip included in schedule for SDSU women's basketball," 9 Aug. 2017 Milpitas was scheduled to host Mission San Jose at SummitPointe Golf Course on Wednesday and to play league opponent Wilcox at Santa Clara Golf and Tennis Club on Thursday. — Julian Ramos, The Mercury News, "Milpitas: Trojans baseball tops Branham High," 23 Mar. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'opponent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for opponent

Noun

borrowed from Medieval Latin oppōnent-, oppōnens "one who proposes something for discussion," from present participle of Latin oppōnere "to place as an obstacle, set in opposition to, argue in reply" — more at oppose

Adjective

borrowed from Latin oppōnent-, oppōnens, present participle of oppōnere "to place as an obstacle, set in opposition to, argue in reply" — more at oppose

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Dictionary Entries near opponent

Statistics for opponent

Last Updated

16 Jan 2019

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for opponent

The first known use of opponent was in 1553

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More Definitions for opponent

opponent

noun

English Language Learners Definition of opponent

: a person, team, group, etc., that is competing against another in a contest

: a person, group, etc., that is against something (such as an action, law, or system) : someone or something that does not want something to exist, be done, etc.

See the full definition for opponent in the English Language Learners Dictionary

opponent

noun

op·po·nent | \ ə-ˈpō-nənt