friendly
adjective
characteristic of or befitting a friend; showing friendship.
friendly
American
[frend-lee]
/ ˈfrɛnd li /
adjective
-
friendlier,
comparative
-
friendliest
superlative
-
characteristic of or befitting a friend; showing friendship.
a friendly greeting.
- Synonyms:
- neighborly, companionable
-
like a friend; kind; helpful.
a little friendly advice.
- Synonyms:
- cordial, amiable, kindly, kindhearted, affectionate, genial
-
favorably disposed; inclined to approve, help, or support.
a friendly bank.
- Synonyms:
- propitious, sympathetic, favorable, helpful, well-disposed, benevolent
- Antonyms:
- antagonistic
-
not hostile or at variance; amicable.
a friendly warship;
friendly natives.
-
easy to use, operate, understand, etc. (usually used in combination).
a consumer-friendly instruction manual;
a friendly food processor.
-
able to coexist with something without harm or trouble (usually used in combination).
environmentally friendly building materials;
a child-friendly restaurant.
adverb
noun
-
friendlies
plural
friendly
1
British
/ ˈfrɛndlɪ /
adjective
-
showing or expressing liking, goodwill, or trust
a friendly smile
-
on the same side; not hostile
-
tending or disposed to help or support; favourable
a friendly breeze helped them escape
noun
-friendly
2
British
combining form
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of friendly
Explanation
Friendly, describes people who are kind, caring, and make you feel comfortable. You might be new to town, but the people are so friendly that you'll soon feel right at home. The noun friend is at the root of the adjective friendly. When you're friendly, you treat everyone like a friend — with warmth and respect. A friendly game of badminton is by definition not too serious or competitive, and a vegetarian-friendly menu makes non meat-eaters feel welcome, just as user-friendly instructions make it easy for non-professionals to follow the directions.
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.
See Examples For:
From MSU, he was off again, this time to a friendly crowd where he once again repeated his brief 9/11 speech before moving on to more familiar applause lines.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Usually Nash, their friendly golden retriever, jumps and barks at new visitors, Rowley said, but once they get inside, “he just thinks it’s time to play.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2026
The 22-year-old was an unused substitute in the country's send-off friendly win against Curacao, which was also Steve Clarke's last game in the dugout at Hampden Park.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
In a statement, Kremlev’s press office said, “Mr. Kremlev and Mr. Trump Jr have a friendly relationship” and they first met “a couple of years ago.”
From Salon ● Sep. 14, 2026
A few ladies pushing baby prams passed us, and Mr. Tuthill tipped his hat to each of them in a friendly manner.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
“Google fans seem to eat this kumbaya stuff up, to really believe it,” wrote John Gruber, a blogger who runs the -friendly site Daring Fireball.
From Forbes ● May 16, 2013
There are lines, -friendly soundbites and poetry, and then there is John Cooper Clarke.
From The Guardian ● May 3, 2013
Leeds United's Harry Wilson and Wolves midfielder Jordan James return to the squad after missing June's friendlies with Ghana and Romania through injury, as does Swansea City defender Ben Cabango.
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
The Reds have won two and lost two of their four friendlies so far - beating Sunderland and Wrexham, but throwing away two-goal leads in defeats by Leeds and Monaco.
From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026
The only senior player other then Joao Pedro to particularly impress was winger Jamie Gittens, who made it three goals in three appearances in pre-season, following his two in behind-closed-doors friendlies against EFL opposition.
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
Defoe's ninth and final game in charge of Woking was a 1-0 defeat by Braintree Town in one of three pre-season friendlies on Tuesday.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
“Who are the friendlies ahead of us?” he asked.
From "Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War" by Steve Sheinkin
“That doesn’t make a home within reach for everyone, but, for people who can afford to buy now, it’s a much friendlier market than it was a few years ago.”
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 10, 2026
Indeed, United did not have a shot on target until the ninth minute of second-half stoppage time, substitute Simi Awujo's goal giving the scoreline a friendlier look.
From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026
The fireworks show has faced controversy regarding the famous avians, spawning a Change.org petition to move the festivities farther away or switch to an environmentally friendlier drone show.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 6, 2026
The longer-term math is friendlier: Against 2029 earnings, Humana trades at roughly 12 times, a more reasonable bet on what the business will look like once the recovery has played out.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026
“You know, you’re a lot friendlier when we’re by ourselves and no one’s around to see us together.”
From "All The Bright Places" by Jennifer Niven
The friendliest U.S. cities, according to World Cup tourists.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
Decades of retelling this story means "kindliest" has now turned into "friendliest".
From BBC ● Feb. 13, 2026
In the end, Elmer the patchwork elephant seemed the friendliest, least controversial decision.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 1, 2026
“He’s probably the friendliest coach you’ll ever meet. He knows a lot about baseball. So like any question I have, he’ll answer for me.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2025
In every way that he could, Rowdy was showing those monkeys that he was the friendliest hound dog in the world.
From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls
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.
