adversity

[ ad-vur-si-tee ]
See synonyms for: adversityadversities on Thesaurus.com

noun,plural ad·ver·si·ties for 2.
  1. adverse or unfavorable fortune or fate; a condition marked by misfortune, calamity, or distress: Friends will show their true colors in times of adversity.

  2. an adverse or unfortunate event or circumstance: You will meet many adversities in life.

Origin of adversity

1
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English adversite, from Anglo-French, from Latin adversitās “opposition”; equivalent to adverse + -ity

synonym study For adversity

2. See affliction.

Other words for adversity

Opposites for adversity

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use adversity in a sentence

  • Let us follow God's commandments, and do unto others as we would they should do unto us, and be patient under all adversities.

    Some Jewish Witnesses For Christ | Rev. A. Bernstein, B.D.

British Dictionary definitions for adversity

adversity

/ (ədˈvɜːsɪtɪ) /


nounplural -ties
  1. distress; affliction; hardship

  2. an unfortunate event or incident

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012