as in hostile
marked by opposition or ill will
there was a long history of adversary dealings between the two nations
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in enemy
one that is hostile toward another
our old cat seemed to consider the new kitten an adversary
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in opponent
one that takes a position opposite another in a competition or conflict
our adversaries in tomorrow's meet are from one of the top schools in the league
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of adversary
Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2026
Such sensitive information, along with financial information and private messages, is helpful for adversary intelligence agencies to use as leverage for blackmail or coercion.
—Dan Morse, Alex Horton, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Sep. 2022
Katie Tarasov, CNBC, 3 June 2026
During the fight, his adversary pulled a knife and plunged it into the victim’s chest.
—Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for adversary
Adjective
Yet distillation has been controversial when used by third parties — particularly in adversary nations like China or Russia — to replicate proprietary work without authorization.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 Apr. 2026
Such sensitive information, along with financial information and private messages, is helpful for adversary intelligence agencies to use as leverage for blackmail or coercion.
—Dan Morse, Alex Horton, Anchorage Daily News, 30 Sep. 2022
Noun
Circuit boards present all sorts of opportunities for adversaries to sneak through malicious components.
—Katie Tarasov, CNBC, 3 June 2026
During the fight, his adversary pulled a knife and plunged it into the victim’s chest.
—Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for adversary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adversary
Adjective
-
Weiss and Tom Cibrowski were openly hostile from the start.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
3 June 2026
-
The Space Force budget has grown significantly in recent years, and one of its mandates is countering spying and potentially hostile acts by Russian and Chinese spacecraft in these orbits.—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
And both of them with the ability and desire to defend and scramble, and the hunger to attack at the first opportunity without letting a perfect ball be the enemy of the good.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
31 May 2026
-
Capable of traveling at speeds exceeding Mach 5 while maneuvering in flight, these weapons are designed to compress enemy reaction times and evade many traditional missile defense systems.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
31 May 2026
Noun
-
The Spurs became a formidable opponent against the Thunder in a seven-game playoff series and in three out of four regular-season matchups.—
Mark Medina,
Forbes.com,
31 May 2026
-
Yet, San Antonio should be well-prepared for the challenge, having beaten the reigning champion Thunder, which started this season 24-1 and swept its first two playoff opponents.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
Republicans can be convinced that negative stories about their candidates are media put-ons, and Democrats are a little envious that their voters haven’t adopted the same attitude of ignore, fight, move on, maybe sue.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
3 June 2026
-
The system features an open architecture that pairs a pure lithium metal negative electrode directly with ambient oxygen drawn from the surrounding atmosphere to act as the positive electrode reactant.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 June 2026
Noun
-
Daemon rocks the trailer with blood on his face from sticking his sword into foes.—
Bryan Alexander,
USA Today,
29 May 2026
-
The Bruins have faced foes’ best efforts all season.—
Aaron Heisen,
Daily News,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
These two great rivals never raced each other again.—
Scott M. Reid,
Oc Register,
30 May 2026
-
In the span of a week, the Golden State Valkyries and Indiana Fever have seemingly become rivals.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
29 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Adversary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adversary. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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