hostile
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or characteristic of an enemy.
a hostile nation.
- Synonyms:
- aggressive, warlike
- Antonyms:
- friendly
-
opposed in feeling, action, or character; antagonistic.
hostile criticism.
- Antonyms:
- friendly
-
characterized by antagonism.
- Antonyms:
- sympathetic
-
not friendly, warm, or generous; not hospitable.
noun
-
a person or thing that is antagonistic or unfriendly.
-
Military. an enemy soldier, plane, ship, etc.
adjective
-
antagonistic; opposed
-
of or relating to an enemy
-
unfriendly
noun
Related Words
Hostile, inimical indicate that which characterizes an enemy or something injurious to one's interests. Hostile applies to the spirit, attitude, or action of an enemy: They showed a hostile and menacing attitude. Inimical applies to an antagonistic or injurious tendency or influence: Their remarks were inimical to his reputation.
Other Word Forms
- hostilely adverb
- interhostile adjective
- nonhostile adjective
- nonhostilely adverb
- overhostile adjective
- overhostilely adverb
- prehostile adjective
- semihostile adjective
- semihostilely adverb
- unhostile adjective
- unhostilely adverb
Etymology
Origin of hostile
First recorded in 1585–95; from Latin hostīlis, equivalent to hostis “enemy” ( host 2 ) + -īlis -ile
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"It's hostile, there's confrontation, they are tough games," remembered George, when asked about the nature of England's matches against Wales.
From BBC
Epstein sent Siegal a link to the story with the subject line: “not sure why she is so hostile.”
From Salon
He still can't get over the fact that an ally like the United States could become so hostile towards his country.
From Barron's
With an authorized storage capacity of 714 million barrels, it is designed to deter threats by hostile nations to interrupt supplies.
Djokovic is not afraid to go toe to toe with hostile fans, using their jibes to fuel his relentless quest for glory and showing the depth of his competitiveness.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
