Meanings
plural hostile witnesses
- lawA witness who intentionally gives unfavorable evidence against the party that called him or her as its witness.
Synonyms: adverse witness, turncoat witness, unfavourable witness
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA witness who intentionally gives unfavorable evidence against the party that called him or her as its witness.
More synonyms by meaning
nouna witness whose relationship to the opposing party is such that his or her testimony may be prejudiced against the opposing party
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Chinese Mandarin 敵對證人 /敌对证人
- 敵對證人 /敌对证人 (díduì zhèngrén)person called to testify by a party to whom that witness is opposed
Spanish testigo desfavorable
- testigo desfavorableperson called to testify by a party to whom that witness is opposed
Thai พยานปรปักษ์
- พยานปรปักษ์person called to testify by a party to whom that witness is opposed
Cite this entry
hostile witness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile%20witness
“hostile witness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile%20witness. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “hostile witness,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/hostile%20witness.
Source: hostile witness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.