Adversary

//ˈæd.vəɹˌsɛɹi// name, noun

name, noun ·Moderate ·College level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An opponent or rival.

    "He prepared to fight his adversary."

  2. 2
    someone who offers opposition wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    The Devil; Satan. Judaism, sometimes

    "Yahweh′s turning Gog around, putting hooks in his jaws, and bringing him out from the remotest parts of the north (Ezek. 38:4-6) is now interpreted as the release of the Adversary from prison."

Example

More examples

"We exorcise you, every unclean spirit, every satanic power, every incursion of the infernal adversary, every legion, every congregation and diabolical sect."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English adversarie, from Anglo-Norman aversaire (in Wace's Life of Saint Margaret) and Old French aversier, aversaire (French adversaire), from Latin adversārius, from adversus (“turned toward”).

Etymology 2

A biblical reference, Satan ultimately deriving from a borrowing of the Hebrew שָׂטָן (Śāṭān, “adversary, accuser”). (See also Satan).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.