adversary.

A person or group opposing another in a contest, dispute, or conflict.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• political adversary
• formidable adversary

On the page

She respected her adversary's command of the evidence.

Usage notes

Primary category: analysis / argumentation / evidence. Forms: Singular adversary; plural adversaries. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: contrast. Commonness: moderately common.