1
as in enemy
one that is hostile toward another
please name the novel's hero and his antagonist
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in opponent
one that takes a position opposite another in a competition or conflict
his antagonist in the boxing match
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of antagonist
By the end, Fettel is set up as the antagonist going forward, not Alma.
—
Will Borger, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
With this current season, however, Julia has switched sides, cozying up to Alexia and Marysol, stoking Alexia’s mounting tensions with Stephanie, and transforming into an antagonist against her former friends Guerdy and Adriana.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
Reum dressed up as the antagonist of the film, Captain Hook, wearing a big pirate hat, a sword and his very own hook hand.
—Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
The two sides are long-term antagonists.
—Andy Browne, semafor.com, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for antagonist
Will Borger, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
With this current season, however, Julia has switched sides, cozying up to Alexia and Marysol, stoking Alexia’s mounting tensions with Stephanie, and transforming into an antagonist against her former friends Guerdy and Adriana.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
Reum dressed up as the antagonist of the film, Captain Hook, wearing a big pirate hat, a sword and his very own hook hand.
—Kayla Grant, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
The two sides are long-term antagonists.
—Andy Browne, semafor.com, 30 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for antagonist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for antagonist
Noun
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When integrated into multiple systems, the Tactical Edge Electromagnetic Solutions (TEEMS) can jam enemy systems with speed and precision.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Netanyahu said the country would continue trying to bring home the bodies of Israelis still being held across enemy lines, such as Eli Cohen, an Israeli spy hung in Damascus in 1965.—
NPR,
NPR,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
New Delhi’s support enabled Hasina to undermine democratic institutions, politicize the judiciary and Election Commission, and enforce repressive laws such as the Digital Security Act, which limited free speech online and allowed arbitrary arrests and detentions of opponents of the regime.—
MUHIB RAHMAN,
Foreign Affairs,
12 Nov. 2025
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Only Atlanta, Milwaukee, Dallas and Miami have bigger negative differentials between their offensive rebounding percentage and their opponents’.—
Eric Koreen,
New York Times,
11 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Friday marked the All-NBA guard’s first chance to pour it on an inferior foe.—
Jace Frederick,
Twin Cities,
8 Nov. 2025
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Start the man who has thrown more touchdowns against the Dolphins than his other AFC East foes combined.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Outside of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC North, who both stand alone as the only squads in their division with winning records, every other divisional leader holds only a slim edge over rivals in hot pursuit.—
Mike Jones,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
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Recently, archaeologists found a massive stone basin in Italy dating back more than 2,000 years — remnants of a once-powerful rival of Rome.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Trump levied his greatest assault against the international economic order, announcing the most expansive set of tariffs in American history on both autocratic adversaries and America’s closest democratic allies in April 2025 (Russia was strikingly excluded).—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
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This is a kind of tribal affiliation that depends on an adversary.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Antagonist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/antagonist. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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