- antagonistic; opposed
- of or relating to an enemy
- unfriendly
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
hos•tile /ˈhɑstəl/USA pronunciation
adj.
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- of or relating to an enemy:The army encountered hostile forces.
- disagreeing or disapproving;
antagonistic:He faced hostile criticism. - not friendly or hospitable:She was hostile to the teacher.
hos•tile
(hos′tl or, esp. Brit., -tīl),USA pronunciation adj.
n.
hos′tile•ly, adv.
- of, pertaining to, or characteristic of an enemy:a hostile nation.
- opposed in feeling, action, or character;
antagonistic:hostile criticism. - characterized by antagonism.
- not friendly, warm, or generous;
not hospitable.
n.
- a person or thing that is antagonistic or unfriendly.
- Militaryan enemy soldier, plane, ship, etc.
- Latin hostīlis, equivalent. to hostis enemy (see host2) + -īlis -ile
- 1585–95
- 1. warlike, aggressive. 2. adverse, averse, contrary. Hostile, inimical indicate that which characterizes an enemy or something injurious to one's interests. Hostile applies to the spirit, attitude, or action of an enemy:They showed a hostile and menacing attitude.Inimical applies to an antagonistic or injurious tendency or influence:Their remarks were inimical to his reputation.
- 1. 2. friendly. 3. sympathetic.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
hostile /ˈhɒstaɪl/ adj
'hostile' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
adversary
- adverse
- aggression
- air raid
- alienate
- antagonize
- anti-Semitic
- appeasement
- archaean
- asocial
- assault and battery
- attack
- attitude
- bandy
- battery
- class-conscious
- containment
- crooked
- design
- embitter
- encounter
- enemy
- fifth column
- foe
- forbidding
- foxhole
- friendly
- front line
- glacial
- Gog and Magog
- green line
- growl
- ill
- ill feeling
- ill will
- infest
- inimical
- inroad
- irreconcilable
- loath
- oppose
- parting shot
- peacekeeping
- Philistine
- prey
- relentless
- rencounter
- set against
- turn on
- abuse