1
as in hatred
a deep-seated ill will
a lingering hostility between the two neighbors ever since since they had that property-line dispute
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in conflict
hostilities plural
a state of armed violent struggle between states, nations, or groups
Both sides agreed to cease all hostilities.
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 hostility
India and Pakistan agreed to an immediate ceasefire mediated by the U.S., ending four days of escalating hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
—
Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 10 May 2025
Escalating hostilities between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan—a close strategic ally of Beijing—may be serving as a testing ground for Chinese defense technology.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 May 2025
Even during Trump’s first term, Congress approved increases in Head Start’s budgets, despite the President’s decades-long hostility toward government aid to the needy.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 10 May 2025
So many of the best games under Eddie Howe have come against a backdrop of a mix of raw passion and hostility.
—Harry De Cosemo, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostility
Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 10 May 2025
Escalating hostilities between nuclear-armed neighbors India and Pakistan—a close strategic ally of Beijing—may be serving as a testing ground for Chinese defense technology.
—Micah McCartney, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 May 2025
Even during Trump’s first term, Congress approved increases in Head Start’s budgets, despite the President’s decades-long hostility toward government aid to the needy.
—Jessica Winter, New Yorker, 10 May 2025
So many of the best games under Eddie Howe have come against a backdrop of a mix of raw passion and hostility.
—Harry De Cosemo, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostility
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hostility
Noun
-
The project educates students about the dangers of hatred and bigotry and the importance of standing against all forms of prejudice.—
Joe Marusak,
Charlotte Observer,
15 May 2025
-
Meanwhile, Republicans such as our current president spew contempt like volcanoes of hatred, prejudice and madness.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
The White House has said there is no conflict and that the president is acting in the interests of the American public and not his own.—
Susan Heavey,
USA Today,
15 May 2025
-
Beneath the surface, there are, in fact, some major conflicts brewing in Enzo’s life: He’s been waging a quiet war against his bourgeois parents (Pierfrancesco Favino, Elodie Bouchez), rejecting the typical academic route that his older brother (Nathan Japy) has successfully chosen.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
The daughter of the trickster god Anansi, Abena spent her entire life terrified that her dad would lose her in a bet, and still bears a grudge that the Doctor couldn't take her away.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
10 May 2025
-
Football folk have memories that would impress elephants and a mafioso’s capacity for holding grudges.—
Michael Walker,
New York Times,
9 May 2025
Noun
-
The trade war ramped up at the beginning of April, so price hikes have not yet affected the cost of living, with inflation easing last month.—
Alina Selyukh,
NPR,
15 May 2025
-
After months of escalating tariffs between the world’s two largest economies, the trade war between the U.S. and China is entering a new chapter – a steep reduction of their respective tariffs for 90 days as the two countries continue trade talk this week.—
Dian Zhang,
USA Today,
15 May 2025
Noun
-
The Democratic contest for an Illinois Senate seat is shaping up as a test of the political power of Gov. JB Pritzker over a primary field of candidates who enter the race with deep animosity for one another and skepticism about the governor’s influence.—
Reid J. Epstein,
New York Times,
12 May 2025
-
But as the conflict spirals, with decades of animosity between the countries and powerful nuclear arsenals pointed at one another, the administration has now signaled it would get involved.—
Christopher Shays,
New York Daily News,
10 May 2025
Noun
-
The Trump administration’s antagonism toward the traditional transatlantic alliance could be the most consequential trigger of further European integration since the groundwork for the EU was laid in 1948.—
Arancha González Laya,
Foreign Affairs,
12 May 2025
-
Interestingly, when the researchers attempted to block the receptor (receptor antagonism is a common pharmacological effect of many commercial drugs), anxiety actually increased.—
Jenny Lehmann,
Discover Magazine,
9 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
The top echelon of Pete Hegseth’s Pentagon has dissolved into a circle of mutual recrimination and enmity worthy of a Mexican standoff from a Quentin Tarantino film.—
The Editors,
National Review,
28 Apr. 2025
-
The talks seek to limit Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of some of the crushing economic sanctions the U.S. has imposed on the Islamic Republic closing in on a half-century of enmity.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Though organizers insist Eurovision is an apolitical event, the contest has long been embroiled in the continent’s tensions.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
18 May 2025
-
Even in the jangling tension of stoppage time, with blocks and ricochets in their team’s penalty area, most Palace fans were silent and biting their fingernails, but the HF continued to beat that drum and sing.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
18 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hostility.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hostility. Accessed 22 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share