What does enemy mean?

Definitions for enemy
ˈɛn ə mien·e·my

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word enemy.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. enemynoun

    an opposing military force

    "the enemy attacked at dawn"

  2. enemy, foe, foeman, oppositionnoun

    an armed adversary (especially a member of an opposing military force)

    "a soldier must be prepared to kill his enemies"

  3. enemynoun

    any hostile group of people

    "he viewed lawyers as the real enemy"

  4. foe, enemynoun

    a personal enemy

    "they had been political foes for years"

Wiktionary

  1. enemynoun

    Someone who is hostile to, feels hatred towards, opposes the interests of, or intends injury to someone else.

  2. enemynoun

    A hostile force or nation; a fighting member of such a force or nation.

    rally together against a common enemy.

  3. enemynoun

    An alliance of such forces.

  4. enemyadjective

    of, relating to, or belonging to an enemy

  5. Etymology: From enemi, anemi (Modern French: ennemi), from inimicus, from in- + amicus

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Enemynoun

    Etymology: ennemi, French; inimicus, Latin.

    All these statutes speak of English rebels and Irish enemies, as if the Irish had never been in condition of subjects, but always out of the protection of the law. John Davies, on Ireland.

    The enemy thinks of raising threescore thousand men for the next Summer. Joseph Addison, on the State of the War.

    Kent, in disguise,
    Follow’d his enemy king, and did him service
    Improper for a slave. William Shakespeare, King Lear.

    He that designedly uses ambiguities, ought to be looked on as an enemy to truth and knowledge. John Locke.

    Bold is the critick, who dares prove
    These heroes were no friends to love;
    And bolder he who dares aver,
    That they were enemies to war. Matthew Prior.

    Defend us from the danger of the enemy. Common Prayer.

Wikipedia

  1. Enemy

    An enemy or a foe is an individual or a group that is considered as forcefully adverse or threatening. The concept of an enemy has been observed to be "basic for both individuals and communities". The term "enemy" serves the social function of designating a particular entity as a threat, thereby invoking an intense emotional response to that entity. The state of being or having an enemy is enmity, foehood or foeship.

ChatGPT

  1. enemy

    An enemy is an individual, group, or nation that opposes, threatens, or intends harm or hostility towards another individual, group, or nation. Enemies are typically perceived as adversaries who are in opposition or conflict with each other. The term "enemy" can be used in various contexts, including personal relationships, warfare, politics, and competitive situations.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Enemynoun

    one hostile to another; one who hates, and desires or attempts the injury of, another; a foe; an adversary; as, an enemy of or to a person; an enemy to truth, or to falsehood

  2. Enemyadjective

    hostile; inimical

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Enemy

    en′e-mi, n. one who hates or dislikes: a foe: a hostile army.—adj. (obs.) hostile.—How goes the enemy? (slang) what o'clock is it?—The Enemy, The old Enemy, the Devil; The last enemy, death. [O. Fr. enemi (mod. Fr. ennemi)—L. inimicusin, neg., amicus, a friend.]

  2. Enemy

    a prov. form of anemone.

The Roycroft Dictionary

  1. enemy

    1. A counter-irritant of which you must get a few, or it's you for fatty degeneration of the cerebrum. 2. The friend who stings you into action. 3. Any one who tells the truth about you.

Dictionary of Nautical Terms

  1. enemy

    The power or people against whom war is waged.

Military Dictionary and Gazetteer

  1. enemy

    In military language, the opposing force; as, “We have met the enemy, and they are ours.”

Suggested Resources

  1. enemy

    Song lyrics by enemy -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by enemy on the Lyrics.com website.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'enemy' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #2903

  2. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'enemy' in Nouns Frequency: #940

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

How to pronounce enemy?

How to say enemy in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of enemy in Chaldean Numerology is: 2

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of enemy in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of enemy in a Sentence

  1. Francis Bacon:

    In taking revenge, a man is but even with his enemy but in passing it over, he is superior.

  2. Richard Steele:

    Praise from an enemy is the most pleasing of all commendations.

  3. Dana Rohrabacher:

    Assad is not our enemy. Neither is Russia our enemy, the radical Islamists who have been murdering Americans by the thousands since 9/11 are the enemy. The Trump administration condemned the Syrian attack Tuesday, calling The Trump administration.

  4. James Mattis:

    In a country with millions of people & cars going everywhere, the enemy is going to get a car bomb out there once in a while.

  5. President Volodymyr Zelensky:

    It’s been a difficult night, the enemy fired 81 missiles in an attempt to intimidate Ukrainians again, returning to their miserable tactics. The occupiers can only terrorize civilians. That’s all they can do. But it won’t help them. They won’t avoid responsibility for everything they have done.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

enemy#1#4784#10000

Translations for enemy

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

Get even more translations for enemy »

Translation

Find a translation for the enemy definition in other languages:

Select another language:

  • - Select -
  • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
  • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
  • Español (Spanish)
  • Esperanto (Esperanto)
  • 日本語 (Japanese)
  • Português (Portuguese)
  • Deutsch (German)
  • العربية (Arabic)
  • Français (French)
  • Русский (Russian)
  • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
  • 한국어 (Korean)
  • עברית (Hebrew)
  • Gaeilge (Irish)
  • Українська (Ukrainian)
  • اردو (Urdu)
  • Magyar (Hungarian)
  • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
  • Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Italiano (Italian)
  • தமிழ் (Tamil)
  • Türkçe (Turkish)
  • తెలుగు (Telugu)
  • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
  • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
  • Čeština (Czech)
  • Polski (Polish)
  • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
  • Românește (Romanian)
  • Nederlands (Dutch)
  • Ελληνικά (Greek)
  • Latinum (Latin)
  • Svenska (Swedish)
  • Dansk (Danish)
  • Suomi (Finnish)
  • فارسی (Persian)
  • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
  • հայերեն (Armenian)
  • Norsk (Norwegian)
  • English (English)

Word of the Day

Would you like us to send you a FREE new word definition delivered to your inbox daily?

Please enter your email address:


Citation

Use the citation below to add this definition to your bibliography:

Style:MLAChicagoAPA

"enemy." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2025. Web. 25 Feb. 2025. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/enemy>.

Discuss these enemy definitions with the community:

0 Comments

    Are we missing a good definition for enemy? Don't keep it to yourself...

    Image or illustration of

    enemy

    Credit »

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Chrome

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Free, no signup required:

    Add to Firefox

    Get instant definitions for any word that hits you anywhere on the web!

    Quiz

    Are you a words master?

    »
    a person who fells trees
    A crate
    B lumberman
    C peccadillo
    D impurity

    Nearby & related entries:

    Alternative searches for enemy: