hostile 1 of 2

adjective

ˈhä-stᵊl How to pronounce hostile (audio)
Definition of hostilenext
1
as in negative
marked by opposition or ill will the suggestions for change were given a hostile reception by some of the longtime employees

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unfavorable
opposed to one's interests the company's president vows to fight the hostile takeover by the giant corporation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

hostile

2 of 2

noun

as in enemy
one that is hostile toward another reports of hostiles in the area kept the settlers on edge

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hostile
Adjective
Saudi civil defense authorities also reported Sunday that six people were injured when a hostile projectile struck a residential neighborhood in Najran, damaging three homes and three vehicles. — Emma Bussey, FOXNews.com, 19 Oct. 2026 In this golden age of cringe, that earlier art of transgression—with its tense silences, humiliations, and hostile disturbance of the performer-audience relationship—was channeled downstream. — Eugenie Brinkema, ARTnews.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Noun
During the recent demonstration test, the Bird of Prey took off from a launch cradle, and once in the air was able to autonomously search for, detect, and classify a target drone standing in for a hostile. — David Szondy april 04, New Atlas, 4 Apr. 2026 But no one has just been out-and-out hostile to him. — Matthew Stolle, Twin Cities, 28 Jan. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hostile
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hostile
  1. negative
  2. unfavorable
  3. enemy
  4. adverse
  5. harmful
  6. opponent
  7. antagonistic
  8. foe
Adjective
  • As for gas, it has usually been treated as a waste product to be burned off; because there are so few pipelines to bring it to market, West Texas gas prices have even dipped negative this year.
    — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 22 Oct. 2026
  • The mood in the markets turned sharply negative today as traders sold off stock around the world.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of negative
Adjective
  • The most egregious perpetrators of fraud in the industry were corrupt doctors who were paid by patients to send insurance companies medical examination reports that omitted unfavorable findings.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Democratic socialism is underwater by 22 points, 37% of Americans are favorable and 59% are unfavorable.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of unfavorable
Noun
  • Compassion doesn’t mean that presidents or other public officials should bow to enemies or surrender common sense in tackling the world’s harsh realities.
    — Kathleen Parker, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
  • And despite huge military spending, Saudi forces have struggled to deter their enemies.
    — Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of enemy
Adjective
  • In recent years, cocoa prices have surged due to adverse weather across key West African producing regions.
    — , CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Batie-Smoose seeks reinstatement or a comparable job, compensation and correction of adverse personnel records.
    — Jackson Thompson OutKick, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of adverse
Adjective
  • Social media giant Meta was hit with a class action lawsuit in Australia on behalf of children and teenagers who allegedly suffered harm over the addictive design features and exposure to harmful content on its platforms Facebook and Instagram.
    — Chad de Guzman, Time, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Their contracts can run hundreds of pages, making harmful terms easy to bury.
    — Emma Witman, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of harmful
Noun
  • Sorrells said that his opponent’s assessment is Ill-informed.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Oct. 2026
  • But that game was in New York and this one was in Charlotte’s backyard and, more importantly, against a far better opponent.
    — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of opponent
Adjective
  • In big cities, people like this tend to pay rent, which often puts them—to borrow some Marxist terminology—in an antagonistic relationship with the local petite bourgeoisie.
    — Benjamin Wallace-Wells, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2026
  • To MacArthur, solitary reading was antagonistic to the Army’s aims.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of antagonistic
Noun
  • Assassination attempts against Putin's foes -- routinely denied by the Kremlin -- have been common during his decades in power.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Assassination attempts against Putin's foes — routinely denied by the Kremlin — have been common during his decades in power.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of foe

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hostile
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Cite this Entry

“Hostile.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hostile. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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