enemies

IPA/ˈen.ə.mi/
KK[ˈɛnəmiz]IPA/ˈen.ə.mi/

enemies — 名詞

  • enemiessingular
  • enemiesesplural

1. a person who dislikes you and wants to cause problems for you or see you fail —

1.名詞B1
釋義

仇敵

仇恨或反對個人的人

a person who dislikes you and wants to cause problems for you or see you fail — for example, a rival who spreads lies about you at work, or a former friend who wants revenge after a fight.

例句

After the argument, Nadia and Darius became enemies and stopped talking to each other.

爭吵之後，Nadia 和 Darius 變成了仇敵，不再跟對方說話。

became + enemies after conflict

The mayor made several enemies during the election by attacking her opponents too harshly.

這位市長在選舉期間過度猛烈地攻擊對手，因此樹立了好幾個仇敵。

make + enemies (collocation)

同義詞
  • foe

    more formal or literary; less common in everyday speech

  • adversary

    suggests active opposition in a conflict or contest, but not necessarily hatred

  • opponent

    neutral term for someone you compete against; no hatred implied

反義詞
  • friend

    someone you like and support

  • ally

    someone who cooperates with you for a shared goal

文法句型

make + enemies

bitter/sworn + enemy

somebody's + enemy

用法筆記

Commonly used with make, create, or turn someone into to describe forming hostile relationships.

常見錯誤

❌He is my enemy because he won the game.
✅He is my opponent in the game, not my enemy.
💡Enemy implies active hatred or harm, not just competition.
❌The cat is the enemy of the mouse.
✅The cat is a predator of the mouse.
💡'Enemy' is for people (or personified things); use 'predator' for natural animal relationships.

2. the nation or armed forces that oppose your own country in a war — for instance,

2.名詞B1
釋義

敵軍

交戰中的國家或武裝部隊

the nation or armed forces that oppose your own country in a war — for instance, the troops your soldiers face on the battlefield, or the foreign government your country is fighting against.

例句

The army moved carefully through the forest to avoid being seen by the enemy.

部隊小心翼翼地穿過森林，以免被敵軍發現。

the enemy (collective singular)

Enemy planes flew over the village three times during the night.

敵軍飛機在夜間三次飛越村莊上空。

enemy + [military noun] as modifier

同義詞
  • foe

    archaic or literary for military enemy; common in poetry and formal writing

  • adversary

    more general; can be military or non-military

反義詞
  • ally

    a country that fights on the same side in a war

文法句型

the + enemy (singular collective)

enemy + noun (e.g. enemy forces)

用法筆記

In this sense the singular form the enemy is often used as a collective noun referring to the entire opposing force, even when many individuals are meant.

常見錯誤

❌The enemies attacked our base.' (when referring to one army)
✅The enemy attacked our base.
💡In military contexts, 'the enemy' is usually treated as a singular collective noun.

3. something that has a damaging effect on something else — for example, how stress

3.名詞B2
釋義

剋星

對另一事物有害的東西

something that has a damaging effect on something else — for example, how stress harms health, or how lack of sleep damages creativity.

例句

Stress is the enemy of good health and can lead to many medical problems.

壓力是健康的剋星，可能導致許多醫療問題。

the enemy of [abstract noun] — metaphor pattern

For a writer, lack of sleep is the greatest enemy of creative thinking.

對作家來說，睡眠不足是創意思考的最大剋星。

同義詞
  • threat

    more general; does not imply active harm, only potential danger

  • bane

    stronger, more literary; means a cause of great distress or harm

反義詞
  • friend

    in metaphorical contexts — e.g. 'Sleep is the friend of good health'

  • ally

    something that helps or supports — e.g. 'Exercise is an ally in weight loss'

文法句型

the + noun + of + something

somebody's + enemy

用法筆記

Almost always used in the singular (the enemy) in a metaphorical construction: 'X is the enemy of Y'. The plural enemies is rare for this sense.

常見錯誤

❌Smoking is an enemy for health.
✅Smoking is the enemy of good health.
💡This sense uses 'the enemy of' as a fixed pattern, not 'an enemy for'.

4. any group of people who oppose or threaten another group, not necessarily in a m

4.名詞B2
釋義

敵對勢力

反對或威脅某群體的團體

any group of people who oppose or threaten another group, not necessarily in a military context — for example, political opponents who try to damage a movement, or rival gangs who fight for control of an area.

例句

The protestors saw the police as enemies trying to silence their voices.

抗議者把警方視為試圖壓制他們聲音的敵對勢力。

see [group] as enemies

In the movie, the hero fights enemies from another planet trying to take over Earth.

在這部電影中，主角必須對抗來自另一個星球、試圖占領地球的敵對勢力。

同義詞
  • opposition

    neutral term for people or groups you compete against

  • hostile forces

    more formal; often used in political or strategic contexts

反義詞
  • allies

    groups that support and cooperate with each other

  • supporters

    people who back a person or cause

文法句型

enemies + of + group

fight/defeat + enemies

用法筆記

Broader than sense 2: the opposition can be political, social, or ideological, not necessarily military. Often plural.

常見錯誤

❌The company has many competitions as enemies.
✅The company has many competitors, not enemies.
💡Rival businesses are competitors, not enemies, unless they use hostile tactics.