Definitions for adversary
ad·ver·sa·ry

Princeton's WordNetRate this definition:1.0 / 1 vote

1. adversary, antagonist, opponent, opposer, resisternoun

   someone who offers opposition

WiktionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. adversarynoun

   An opponent or rival.

2. Adversarynoun

   Satan

3. Adversarynoun

   the Devil

4. Adversarynoun

   Shaitan

5. Etymology: aversaire (in Wace's Life of Saint Margaret), from aversier, aversaire (French adversaire), from adversarius, from adversus.

Samuel Johnson's DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Adversarynoun

   An opponent; antagonist; enemy: generally applied to those that have verbal or judicial quarrels; as, controvertists or litigants: sometimes to an opponent in single combat. It may sometimes imply an open profession of enmity; as we say, a secret enemy is worse than an open adversary.

   Etymology: adversaire, Fr. adversarius, Lat.

   Yet am I noble, as the adversary
   I come to cope. William Shakespeare, King Lear.

   Those rites and ceremonies of the church, therefore, which were the self-same now that they were, when holy and virtuous men maintained them against profane and deriding adversaries, her own children have in derision. Richard Hooker, b. i. § 1.

   Mean while th’ adversary of God and man,
   Satan, with thoughts inflam’d, of highest design,
   Puts on swift wings. John Milton, Paradise Lost, b. ii. l. 620.

   An adversary, on the contrary, makes a stricter search into us, and discovers every flaw and imperfection in our tempers. A friend exaggerates a man’s virtues; an enemy inflames his crimes. Joseph Addison, Spectator, №. 399.

WikipediaRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Adversary

   An adversary is generally considered to be a person, group, or force that opposes and/or attacks.

ChatGPTRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. adversary

   An adversary is a person, group, or force that opposes or attacks; an opponent or enemy. In a broader sense, it can also refer to anything that opposes or obstructs progress or achievement, such as a difficult situation or a challenging problem.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Adversarynoun

   one who is turned against another or others with a design to oppose or resist them; a member of an opposing or hostile party; an opponent; an antagonist; an enemy; a foe

2. Adversaryadjective

   opposed; opposite; adverse; antagonistic

3. Adversaryadjective

   having an opposing party; not unopposed; as, an adversary suit

WikidataRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Adversary

   The Adversary is a fictional character, a demonic supervillain in the Marvel Comics universe.

Chambers 20th Century DictionaryRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. Adversary

   ad′vėrs-ar-i, n. an opponent: an enemy: Satan, as the general adversary of mankind. [O. Fr. aversier—L. adversarius. See Adverse.]

Dictionary of Military and Associated TermsRate this definition:4.5 / 2 votes

1. adversary

   A party acknowledged as potentially hostile to a friendly party and against which the use of force may be envisaged.

Dictionary of Nautical TermsRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. adversary

   Generally applied to an enemy, but strictly an opponent in single combat.

Military Dictionary and GazetteerRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. adversary

   Generally applied to an enemy, but strictly an opponent in single combat.

Editors ContributionRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. adversarynoun

   The active duty of sin from the opposed against the versed search and rescue team as a rivalry. 1.) one's opponent in a contest, conflict, or dispute.

   Competition be warned, adversary is to face me in the form of a storm and I swarm.

   Etymology: Enemy

   
   

   Submitted by Tehorah_Nephesh_Lespri_Bondye on April 1, 2025  

Suggested ResourcesRate this definition:0.0 / 0 votes

1. adversary

   Song lyrics by adversary -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by adversary on the Lyrics.com website.

Matched Categories

1. • Person

Usage in printed sourcesFrom: 

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How to pronounce adversary?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say adversary in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of adversary in Chaldean Numerology is: 7

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of adversary in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of adversary in a Sentence

1. Duncan Hunter:

   Bergdahl was in the custody of Haqqani initially, not the Taliban. But regardless of who claimed custody of Bergdahl in the end, is the Taliban not an adversary? is the Taliban not responsible for American deaths? Frankly, it's more nonsense from an administration that seems to have lost its sense of reality.

2. Anthony Marchese:

   What would you say if you blanked out the words rare earth and said, ‘How would you feel about being totally dependent on a product from a potential adversary whose use is ubiquitous in your defense industry and everyday products like smartphone?

3. President Biden:

   President Biden's bright, President Biden's tough, and I've found that President Biden is — as they say when I used to play ball — a worthy adversary.

4. Sally Yates:

   The efforts by a foreign adversary to interfere and undermine our democratic processes — and those of our allies — pose a serious threat to all Americans.

5. James Comey:

   The FBI was a serious concern of ours for reasons I can't get into. But we never found the evidence that -- technical indicators -- that there was penetration by an adversary of that system.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

References

1. ^ Princeton's WordNet
   http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=adversary
2. ^ Wiktionary
   https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Adversary
3. ^ Samuel Johnson's Dictionary
   https://johnsonsdictionaryonline.com/views/search.php?term=adversary
4. ^ Wikipedia
   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adversary
5. ^ ChatGPT
   https://chat.openai.com
6. ^ Webster Dictionary
   https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adversary
7. ^ Wikidata
   https://www.wikidata.org/w/index.php?search=adversary
8. ^ Chambers 20th Century Dictionary
   https://www.gutenberg.org/files/37683/37683-h/37683-h.htm#:~:text=adversary
9. ^ Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms
   https://www.tradoc.army.mil/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/AD1029823-DOD-Dictionary-of-Military-and-Associated-Terms-2017.pdf
10. ^ Dictionary of Nautical Terms
    https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26000/pg26000-images.html#:~:text=adversary
11. ^ Military Dictionary and Gazetteer
    https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/59563/pg59563-images.html
12. ^ Usage in printed sources
    https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=adversary