1
as in enemies
one that is hostile toward another
are you friend or foe?
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in opponents
one that takes a position opposite another in a competition or conflict
this Saturday our team will go up against our longtime foes in a game that will determine the champion of the conference
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of foes
Bunny hopping is nothing new for first-person shooters; spamming the jump button to confuse foes is a decades-old tactic.
—
Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2025
However, with five ranked foes remaining, and only two coming at home (only one of those two an SEC team, for that matter), Florida will need to sustain change, a feat Napier has yet to do.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2025
The Bronx Bombers are a very good team, but these two foes always step up a notch when playing each other.
—Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
Benny Emmanuel stars as Vgly, a young rapper trying to claw his way to prominence while feuding with foes through beats and rhymes.
—PC Magazine, 3 Oct. 2025
And Markey has defeated whippersnapper-type political foes before.
—David Mark, The Washington Examiner, 3 Oct. 2025
Fans and foes weigh in on social media.
—Patricia Gallagher Newberry, Cincinnati Enquirer, 2 Oct. 2025
Infiniti plays Willa in Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another (in theaters now), a girl whose revolutionary parents (Leonardo DiCaprio and Teyana Taylor) face off against military foes (including Sean Penn).
—Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
The Biden administration completed the reversion to a Cold War frame, declaring a global divide between democracies and autocracies, with China and Russia reprising their roles as principal foes.
—Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2025
However, with five ranked foes remaining, and only two coming at home (only one of those two an SEC team, for that matter), Florida will need to sustain change, a feat Napier has yet to do.
—Noah White, Miami Herald, 5 Oct. 2025
The Bronx Bombers are a very good team, but these two foes always step up a notch when playing each other.
—Drew Vonscio, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
Benny Emmanuel stars as Vgly, a young rapper trying to claw his way to prominence while feuding with foes through beats and rhymes.
—PC Magazine, 3 Oct. 2025
And Markey has defeated whippersnapper-type political foes before.
—David Mark, The Washington Examiner, 3 Oct. 2025
Fans and foes weigh in on social media.
—Patricia Gallagher Newberry, Cincinnati Enquirer, 2 Oct. 2025
Infiniti plays Willa in Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another (in theaters now), a girl whose revolutionary parents (Leonardo DiCaprio and Teyana Taylor) face off against military foes (including Sean Penn).
—Jack Smart, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
The Biden administration completed the reversion to a Cold War frame, declaring a global divide between democracies and autocracies, with China and Russia reprising their roles as principal foes.
—Jennifer Kavanagh, Foreign Affairs, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for foes
Noun
-
While it’s commonly believed that cats and dogs are inherent enemies, the American Kennel Club (AKC) suggests that isn’t always the case.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Militaries are reviving old tactics with new technology, using decoys to confuse enemies and protect real weapons.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Those opponents cited massive price tags in other states with similar efforts, and have argued the accounts harm public schools.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The Texas quarterback and de facto royal family member struggled in the season opener at Ohio State, then racked up numbers against two of three lesser opponents.—
Steven Louis Goldstein,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
On the one hand, Madrid sit two points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga after a dip in form from their Catalan rivals and have won nine of their 10 games in all competitions.—
Mario Cortegana,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
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OpenAI’s aggressive expansion could be critical to keep up with rivals like Meta, Microsoft and Google that have spent decades building their digital ecosystems, said Daniel Keum, an associate professor at Columbia Business School.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Foes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/foes. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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