frenemy

American  

[fren-uh-mee] / ˈfrɛn ə mi /

Sometimes frienemy

noun

1. Informal. a person or group that is friendly toward another because the relationship brings benefits, but harbors feelings of resentment or rivalry.

   Clearly, turning the competition into frenemies is good for your business.

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Etymology

Origin of frenemy

First recorded in 1950-55; fr(iend) + enemy

Example Sentences

When a high-school frenemy convinces four post-college besties in suburban Maryland to let her make a documentary about them, it goes viral, and all millennial hell breaks loose.

From Los Angeles Times

Too often people spend time with friends or frenemies out of habit, convenience or social positioning, perhaps drinking too much or laughing too loud to mask the lack of synchrony.

From The Wall Street Journal

What role do frenemies play in real life?

From The Wall Street Journal

By contrast, the frequently angry and bitter Saul at least has the kind of shadings that make him a worthy frenemy, and “David” could have mined more conflict from the relationship between the two.

From The Wall Street Journal

She was famously the frenemy that fuelled Taylor Swift's diatribe Bad Blood.

From BBC