Meanings
comparative more hostile · superlative most hostile
- Not friendly; appropriate to an enemy; showing the disposition of an enemy; showing ill will and malevolence or a desire to thwart and injure.
a hostile force
3 more examples
hostile intentions
a hostile country
hostile to a sudden change
Synonyms: inimical, unfriendly
- not comparableBeing or relating to a hostile takeover.
Microsoft may go hostile in its bid for Yahoo! as soon as Friday, according to a published report.
plural hostiles
- in pluralgovernmentAn enemy.
1 more example
The Japanese got their attack in first. About ten minutes after passing the U.S. aircraft, they spotted Hornet (local weather patterns temporarily concealing Enterprise). Things had improved a little bit compared to the Eastern Solomons, and three dozen F4F Wildcats on combat air patrol were vectored onto the oncoming hostiles, but once that initial task was accomplished, things began to collapse back into the cacophony and chaos that was all too familiar to those aboard the Enterprise, meaning that the end result was round about the same[…]
2021 February 3, Drachinifel, 10:55 from the start, in Guadalcanal Campaign - Santa Cruz (IJN 2 : 2 USN), archived from the original on 04 Dec 2022
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveNot friendly; appropriate to an enemy; showing the disposition of an enemy; showing ill will and malevolence or a desire to thwart and injure.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectivecharacterized by enmity or ill will
adjectivenot belonging to your own country's forces or those of an ally
adjectiveimpossible to bring into friendly accord
adjectivevery unfavorable to life or growth
adjectiveunsolicited and resisted by the management of the target company (used of attempts to buy or take control of a business)
nountroops belonging to the enemy's military forces
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinhostīlis
- Middle Frenchhostile
- Englishhostile
Borrowed from Middle French hostile, from Latin hostīlis, from hostis (“enemy”). Displaced Old English fēondlīċ.
More words from Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek πολέμιος, δάϊος
- πολέμιος (polémios)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- δάϊος (dáïos)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- ἐχθρός (ekhthrós)antagonistic
- δυσμενής (dusmenḗs)antagonistic
- ἀνάρσιος (anársios)antagonistic
Arabic مُعَادِي
- مُعَادِي (muʕādī)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
Bulgarian вра́жески, неприя́телски
- вра́жески (vrážeski)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- неприя́телски (neprijátelski)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- вражде́бен (vraždében)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- вражде́бен (vraždében)antagonistic
Catalan hostil
- hostilbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Chinese Mandarin 敵對的 /敌对的, 懷敵意的 /怀敌意的
- 敵對的 /敌对的 (díduì de)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- 懷敵意的 /怀敌意的 (huái díyì de)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
Czech nepřátelský
- nepřátelskýbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Dutch vijandig
- vijandigbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Esperanto malamika, malamika
- malamikabelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- malamikaantagonistic
- malamikemaantagonistic
Finnish vihamielinen, vihamielinen
- vihamielinenbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- vihamielinenantagonistic
French hostile
- hostilebelonging or appropriate to an enemy
German feindlich, feindselig
- feindlichbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- feindseligbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- gegnerischantagonistic
- unversöhnlichantagonistic
- antagonistischantagonistic
- giftigantagonistic
Greek εχθρικός, εχθρικός
- εχθρικός (echthrikós)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- εχθρικός (echthrikós)antagonistic
Hebrew עוֹיֵן
- עוֹיֵן ('oyén)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
Hindi शत्रुतापूर्ण, अहित
- शत्रुतापूर्ण (śatrutāpūrṇ)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- अहित (ahit)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- अपकारी (apkārī)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- शत्रुतापूर्ण (śatrutāpūrṇ)antagonistic
- अहित (ahit)antagonistic
- अपकारी (apkārī)antagonistic
Hungarian ellenséges
- ellenségesbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Irish naimhdeach, naimhdeach
- naimhdeachbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- naimhdeachantagonistic
Japanese 敵の, 敵対的な
- 敵のbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- 敵対的な (tekitaiteki na)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- 敵対的 (tekitaiteki)antagonistic
Korean 적대적인
- 적대적인 (jeokdaejeog-in)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
Latin hostilis, alienus
- hostilisbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- alienusbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- infestusantagonistic
Māori taraweti
- tarawetiantagonistic
Norwegian Bokmål fiendtlig
- fiendtligbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Polish wrogi
- wrogibelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Portuguese hostil
- hostilbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Romanian ostil
- ostilbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Russian вражде́бный, вра́жеский
- вражде́бный (vraždébnyj)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- вра́жеский (vrážeskij)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- неприя́тельский (neprijátelʹskij)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- вражде́бный (vraždébnyj)antagonistic
Scottish Gaelic nàimhdeach, nàimhdeil
- nàimhdeachbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- nàimhdeilbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- eucairdeachbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Slovak nepriateľský
- nepriateľskýbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Spanish hostil
- hostilbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Swedish fientlig
- fientligbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Ukrainian воро́жий, воро́жий
- воро́жий (voróžyj)belonging or appropriate to an enemy
- воро́жий (voróžyj)antagonistic
Welsh gelyniaethol, gelyniaethus
- gelyniaetholbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
- gelyniaethusbelonging or appropriate to an enemy
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with hostile
All rhymes →Sounds the same
Anagrams
Cite this entry
hostile. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile
“hostile.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hostile,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile.
Source: hostile on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.