ill-wishers

noun

plural of ill-wisher
as in enemies

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill-wishers
  1. enemies
  2. opponents
  3. foes
  4. adversaries
Noun
  • Old enemies, bad habits, a paranoid government and an unrelenting ex-cop will make retirement their most difficult mission yet.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 20 Aug. 2026
  • It is tasked both with combating enemies abroad and stamping out protests at home.
    — Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of enemies
Noun
  • Seemingly countless millions of dollars are being spent on the measure, particularly by its wealthy opponents.
    — Dan Walters, Mercury News, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Plus, the Fighting Irish have what appears to be a soft schedule to start the season (the first six opponents had losing records last season).
    — Dan Santaromita, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of opponents
Noun
  • Over the course of the 95-minute run time, Cole will also deploy knives, a fire ax, a fishing spear, various firearms, and his very capable fists to take out foes, but the lock marks a high point in terms of situation-specific ingenuity.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 21 Aug. 2026
  • The preseason pollsters like Big Ten foes Ohio State and Oregon better.
    — Joe Rexrode, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of foes
Noun
  • Defending the strike, Netanyahu alleged on Wednesday that Turkey — a NATO ally of the US that is one of Israel’s top regional adversaries — was intent on deploying forces there.
    — Billy Stockwell, CNN Money, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Our adversaries are constantly looking for new vulnerabilities to exploit.
    — Frances Townsend, New York Daily News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of adversaries
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ill-wisher
ill-wishers
image
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Ill-wishers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill-wishers. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of cogent

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All