foe
1 Americannoun
-
a person who feels enmity, hatred, or malice toward another; enemy.
a bitter foe.
- Synonyms:
- antagonist, opponent
- Antonyms:
- friend
-
a military enemy; hostile army.
- Antonyms:
- friend
-
a person belonging to a hostile army or nation.
- Synonyms:
- antagonist, opponent
- Antonyms:
- friend
-
an opponent in a game or contest; adversary.
a political foe.
- Synonyms:
- antagonist, opponent
-
a person who is opposed in feeling, principle, etc., to something.
a foe to progress in civil rights.
- Synonyms:
- antagonist, opponent
-
a thing that is harmful to or destructive of something.
Sloth is the foe of health.
abbreviation
abbreviation
noun
Related Words
See enemy.
Etymology
Origin of foe
First recorded before 900; Middle English foo, Old English fāh “hostile,” gefāh “enemy”; cognate with Old High German gifēh “at war”; feud 1
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.
He did this not only for practical reasons—a humiliated foe is a dangerous foe—but out of decency.
When his wish is granted and he finds himself amid extraterrestrial new friends and foes in a gorgeously animated vision of space, he must rethink what it means to feel at home.
From Los Angeles Times
The Sooners have beaten five ranked teams this season—including last month when they took down Alabama, their foe in Friday’s College Football Playoff matchup in Norman, Okla.
They tuned in to see Ohtani, Yamamoto and Sasaki, a trio that has left the Dodgers’ foes wondering if they will ever be able to compete for Japanese stars again.
It’s hard to fathom the Tigers prevailing in a bidding war against a foe like the Dodgers or New York Yankees.
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.
