friendlier
friendlier — adjective
- friendlierpositive
- more friendliercomparative
- most friendliersuperlative
1. A friendly person is warm and easy to talk to, and they treat others in a kind a
A friendly person is warm and easy to talk to, and they treat others in a kind and pleasant way.
Amara gave the new student a friendly smile and showed her to the classroom.
collocation: friendly smile
The waiter at the café was so friendly that Kwame went back every morning.
Mei-Lin's friendly voice on the phone made the worried customer feel much better.
Our new neighbours were friendly and brought us homemade bread on the first day.
Are you friendly with the family that lives next door to you?
- warm
stresses emotional openness and genuine liking, stronger than friendly
- kind
focuses on doing helpful things for others, not just being pleasant
- approachable
means easy to start talking to; narrower than friendly
- amiable
more formal and slightly old-fashioned
用法筆記
Most common sense. Subject is usually a person, or something that belongs to a person (their smile, voice, or manner).
常見錯誤
2. A friendly place feels welcoming and comfortable, so people enjoy spending time
A friendly place feels welcoming and comfortable, so people enjoy spending time there.
The small hotel felt friendly the moment Ingrid walked through the front door.
describing a place as friendly
Fatima chose the smaller school because it had a much friendlier atmosphere.
collocation: friendly atmosphere
The café around the corner is small but friendly and full of regulars.
Suki found the village market surprisingly friendly, with sellers who smiled and chatted.
Is there a friendly park near here where children can play safely?
- cold
describes a place that feels emotionally distant
用法筆記
Subject is a place, setting, or environment, not a person. Distinguish from sense 1 (WARM AND KIND), which describes people's behaviour.
3. A friendly match, game, or debate is done just for fun or practice — winning is
A friendly match, game, or debate is done just for fun or practice — winning is not the main goal.
The two offices played a friendly football match on a muddy pitch.
collocation: friendly match
After the conference, the lawyers had a friendly debate about the new law.
Tariq joined the club's friendly chess tournament just to meet new people.
Even a friendly argument can turn serious if you push too hard.
The two schools held a friendly netball game to celebrate the end of term.
- non-competitive
more formal; stresses the lack of a serious contest
- informal
broader; can describe any relaxed situation, not just games
- casual
everyday word for anything not formal or serious
- serious
in sport: played to win, not just for fun
文法句型
a friendly + match/game/debate/argument
用法筆記
Usually attributive (before a noun): 'a friendly match,' not 'the match was friendly.' Distinguish from sense 1 (WARM AND KIND): this sense describes events, not people.
常見錯誤
4. Friendly nations, forces, or groups are on the same side and do not fight or wor
Friendly nations, forces, or groups are on the same side and do not fight or work against each other.
Friendly aircraft passed over the base and the soldiers did not raise the alarm.
The two countries have remained friendly since the peace deal was signed.
Naveen's unit was ordered not to fire on friendly forces in the area.
A friendly nation sent food and medicine within hours of the earthquake.
The drone could not tell friendly ships from enemy ones in the dark.
- allied
specifically means joined by a formal agreement or treaty
- sympathetic
means sharing the same goals or values, less military in tone
- on-side
informal; describes someone who supports you in a dispute
文法句型
friendly + forces/nation/country
用法筆記
Subject is usually a country, military force, or organised group. Common in news, political, and military contexts. Distinguish from sense 1 (WARM AND KIND): this sense is about alliance, not personal warmth.
常見錯誤
friendlier — noun
- friendliersingular
- friendliersplural
1. In sport, a friendly is a match played for fun and practice, without the pressur
In sport, a friendly is a match played for fun and practice, without the pressure of an official competition.
Oluwaseun scored twice in the friendly against the university team last Wednesday.
The manager used the friendly to try out three new players in defence.
friendly as a countable noun
England played a friendly with Brazil just weeks before the World Cup began.
The pre-season friendly drew a crowd of nearly twelve thousand excited fans.
The coach told the team to treat the friendly like a real league match.
- exhibition match
more formal; used in official sports contexts
- practice game
less formal; used more in American English
- warm-up match
stresses preparation before an important competition
- league game
a match that counts towards a championship
- final
the last and most important match of a tournament
文法句型
play a friendly
in a friendly
用法筆記
Countable noun (a friendly, two friendlies). Used mainly in sports journalism and among fans. The noun form comes from the adjective sense 3 (NON-COMPETITIVE).
常見錯誤
friendlier — adverb
1. If you do something friendly, you do it in a warm and kind way, as a friend woul
If you do something friendly, you do it in a warm and kind way, as a friend would.
The old man waved friendly from his porch every time we walked past.
adverbial use: waved friendly
To everyone's surprise, the cat approached the tall stranger friendly, purring loudly.
The two drivers got out of their cars and talked friendly, exchanging insurance details.
The teacher spoke friendly to the nervous child on the first day of school.
Even after the argument, Ingrid's colleague treated her friendly at the staff lunch.
文法句型
verb + friendly (wave friendly, speak friendly, nod friendly)
用法筆記
Rare in modern everyday English. In normal conversation, 'in a friendly way' is far more common than using 'friendly' as an adverb. This adverbial use can sound old-fashioned or literary.