1
as in hatred
a deep-seated ill will
a lingering hostility between the two neighbors ever since since they had that property-line dispute
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in conflict
hostilities plural
a state of armed violent struggle between states, nations, or groups
Both sides agreed to cease all hostilities.
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hostility
The Founders envisioned a Nation in which religious voices and views are integral to a vibrant public square and human flourishing and in which religious people and institutions are free to practice their faith without fear of discrimination or hostility from the Government.
—
Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Many members of Putin’s aristocracy continue to hold out hope that after the end of hostilities, everything will become, if not different, then at least milder.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 8 Sep. 2025
At this point, arguments become a predictable mix of hostility, guardedness and mockery.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
Critics pointed to a lack of qualifications for the new committee members, with more than half never having published research on vaccinations and many having predetermined hostility toward vaccines.
—Jordan Miller, The Conversation, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostility
Hollie Silverman, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Many members of Putin’s aristocracy continue to hold out hope that after the end of hostilities, everything will become, if not different, then at least milder.
—Andrei Kolesnikov, Foreign Affairs, 8 Sep. 2025
At this point, arguments become a predictable mix of hostility, guardedness and mockery.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
Critics pointed to a lack of qualifications for the new committee members, with more than half never having published research on vaccinations and many having predetermined hostility toward vaccines.
—Jordan Miller, The Conversation, 5 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hostility
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hostility
Noun
-
Foreign perpetrators have been linked to previous acts intended to incite hatred.—
Saskya Vandoorne,
CNN Money,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The left is always, at all times and places, a violent phenomenon full of hatred.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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And if someone begins filming you during the potential conflict?—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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The country is also the site of the Western Hemisphere’s longest-running internal armed conflict, and constitutionally requires all men between the ages of 18 and 24 to undertake some form of military service.—
Rebecca Johns,
Miami Herald,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Darkly funny and deeply melancholic, the film turns the family estate into a pressure cooker of grief, grudges and reluctant affection.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Sep. 2025
-
After Abe’s assassination in 2022 by a suspect who said he was motivated by a grudge against the church, an internal survey in the LDP later found that nearly half of the party’s members had links to it.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
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All Quiet on the Western Front is a visually graphic portrayal of the horrors of war, earning four Academy Awards in 2023 — including Best International Feature Film.—
Jacqueline Weiss,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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Presumably, this is because those players lost their ‘development’ period — their early teenage years — to the war.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Regarding her own father, former Hollywood lighting director Thomas Markle, there is such entrenched bitterness, and this situation makes any reconciliation far from likely.—
Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa,
FOXNews.com,
9 Sep. 2025
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The biggest casualty, says Srivastava, will be the goodwill between India and the United States, built after decades of bitterness over Washington's support of India's adversaries like Pakistan.—
Omkar Khandekar,
NPR,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Maybe there won’t be any animosity at all.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
10 Sep. 2025
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Having established Laura and Cherry’s mutual animosity right away, The Girlfriend pushes them steadily toward that confrontation teased in the first moments.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Adding to antagonism between the two songwriting partners, both of whom have had pretty stellar solo careers the past four decades, has been Marr’s 2018 trademarking of The Smiths name.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
3 Sep. 2025
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Here in his little 80-page grin-inducing edition published by Titan Books featuring those intimidating Klingons during their downtime, Spiotto lets his imagination run rampant in envisioning just what existence is like after the antagonism and combat plans are put away.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Too much of today’s public discourse, especially online, fosters enmity instead of empathy.—
Russell M. Nelson,
Time,
5 Sep. 2025
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While there’s no love triangle, The Long Walk treats its allegiances and enmities with a grandeur that rivals any romance, especially the connection between its hero, Ray Garraty (Cooper Hoffman), and his friend Peter McVries (David Jonsson).—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hostility.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hostility. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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