BÊTE NOIRE Synonyms: 74 Similar and Opposite Words

bête noire

noun

ˌbet-ˈnwär

Definition of bête noire

as in dread

something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason doing my own tax return is the bête noire that haunts me every April

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in enemy

something or someone that is hated in that organization's view, society's number one bête noire should be the drunk driver of a motor vehicle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of bête noire There’s plenty of satisfying comic justice to come when Salieri is left alone to his own devices — and to spend a lot of climactic alone time with the audience — long after his bete noire is gone. — Chris Willman, Variety, 27 Feb. 2026 David Warner, like his bete noire Broad, was involved in 2023 but has retired since. — Darren Richman, New York Times, 11 Nov. 2025 Others also pointed to a 2010 Bon Jovi gig in Tokyo that featured images of the Dalai Lama – Beijing’s bete noire – on the stage background. — Heather Chen, CNN, 10 Feb. 2024 Wilt Chamberlain, Russell’s friend and lifelong bete noire, tried to slow down the game by taking Russell one-on-one in half-court sets that put the massive, absurdly gifted Wilt square in the post. — Corbin Smith, Rolling Stone, 8 Feb. 2023 To some Republican participants in the hearing, the whole thing seemed like an opportunity to take easy shots at outlets like Fox News, long a bete noire of the liberal and Democratic establishment. — Andy Meek, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2021 Final approval rests with Italian President Sergio Mattarella—a respected figure in Italy’s establishment and another bete noire of the League and 5 Star Movement. — WSJ, 11 Feb. 2019

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bête noire

Noun

Wedding season is in full swing, bringing with it a familiar sense of dread for anyone who fears the dance floor.

— Chloe Veltman, NPR, 11 July 2026
Australian newspapers in the early 1800s offered constant snake coverage, giving a sense of collective dread.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 July 2026

Definition of dread

Noun

But rewrite the scene a little bit – Vader, after lopping off Luke’s hand, cradles him in his lap as the young man wakes up slowly to see the dark mask of his enemy above him.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 17 July 2026
Valerian both underestimated the enemy and overestimated Roman military strength.

— Robin Wright, New Yorker, 17 July 2026

Definition of enemy

Noun

But the deeper journey, one that Salman speaks to so powerfully, is the movement from a place of active hate to a place of love.

— Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 July 2026
Monday will mark eight weeks since authorities say two teens, apparently radicalized by hate online, stormed the Islamic Center of San Diego and killed three congregants, including a security guard who engaged them in a gunfight.

— Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 July 2026

Definition of hate

Noun

But your abhorrence of the outcomes of particular elections doesn’t justify your saying, Well, the hell with that.

— Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 2 July 2026
When human decency and basic civility fall victim to partisanship and ideology, and abhorrence of violence becomes tempered by political aims, monstrosities and tyrannies become possible.

— Michael Bloomberg, Twin Cities, 24 Sep. 2025

Definition of abhorrence

Noun

The other is that Republicans’ antipathy towards vote-by-mail is waning.

— Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 1 June 2026
Alexander Kazakov | Afp | Getty Images That Russia and China are seen as ideologically aligned on many geopolitical issues, with each sharing a traditional antipathy and distrust towards the West, and Washington.

— Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 20 May 2026

Definition of antipathy

Noun

These seemingly minor nuisances are becoming a drain on municipal resources and complicating the rollout of robotaxi service.

— Bloomberg, Mercury News, 14 July 2026
Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, 19, was widely expected to plead guilty to charges of mischief and public nuisance.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 July 2026

Definition of nuisance

Noun

And that was before the abomination — three-parts Netflix advertising event and one-part baseball game — even happened.

— Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 13 July 2026
Qatar 2022 was an abomination in so many ways, a World Cup staged in a nation roughly the size of Connecticut, with an appalling human rights record, but the football was frequently thrilling.

— Oliver Kay, New York Times, 13 June 2026

Definition of abomination

Noun

The late founder’s associations with people who collaborated with France’s Nazi occupiers in World II and his multiple hate-speech convictions, including Holocaust denial, made the National Front anathema to many voters.

— Sylvie Corbet, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026
This concentration of capital is anathema to a thriving democracy.

— Annie Lowrey, The Atlantic, 6 July 2026

Definition of anathema

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bet

bête noire

bêtes noires

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Style

“Bête noire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/b%C3%AAte%20noire. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of bête noire

noun

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