1
a
: of or relating to an enemy
hostile fire
b
: marked by malevolence : having or showing unfriendly feelings
a hostile act
c
: openly opposed or resisting
a hostile critic
hostile to new ideas
d(1)
: not hospitable
plants growing in a hostile environment
(2)
: having an intimidating, antagonistic, or offensive nature
a hostile workplace
2
a
: of or relating to the opposing party in a legal controversy
a hostile witness
b
: adverse to the interests of a property owner or corporation management
a hostile takeover
hostile noun
hostilely adverb

Examples of hostile in a Sentence

Dugoni, a lawyer who coauthored a nonfiction book about an Idaho worker brain-damaged in 1996 by cyanide fumes, opens his debut novel with a wrongful death attorney in San Francisco, David Sloane, about to make his closing remarks defending a corporation in a similar case. Sloane, who has won 14 cases in a row, hates his arrogant client and must face an obviously hostile jury. Publishers Weekly, 9 Jan. 2006
Relations with neighboring societies may be intermittently or chronically hostile. A society may be able to hold off its enemies as long as it is strong, only to succumb when it becomes weakened for any reason, including environmental damage. Jared M. Diamond, Collapse, 2005
I do not want a hostile relationship with my surgeon. But it's obvious he's pigeonholed me into the last of the four patient categories that doctors use when writing a case history: young, middle-aged, senior, elderly. Sylvia Simmons, Newsweek, 10 June 2002
Even when one is inside a climate-controlled spacecraft, sheltered from the deadly vacuum outside, space is a hostile setting. Terrestrial organisms venturing off the planet face a number of threats, chief among them cosmic radiation and the near absence of gravity. Kenneth S. Kosik, Air & Space, June/July 2001
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
But the country’s new leaders will also have to look outward, balancing the tangled, sometimes contradictory interests of many foreign powers — some friendly, some hostile, some wary. Josh Holder, New York Times, 23 Dec. 2024 According to the complaint, several parties had to partake in an all-hands-on-deck meeting to address Lively’s claims of a hostile work environment. Christy Piña, The Hollywood Reporter, 23 Dec. 2024 Both sides are trying to innovate better ways to spoof, jam, and disrupt enemy communications, particularly drones, while simultaneously working to harden their own systems against hostile signals. Justin Ling, WIRED, 23 Dec. 2024 In the complaint, Lively alleges that the work environment with Baldoni at the helm grew so hostile that an emergency meeting was called that included Sony Pictures. Althea Legaspi, Rolling Stone, 21 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for hostile 

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin hostīlis, from hostis "enemy" + -īlis "pertaining to or characteristic of (such persons)" — more at host entry 4

First Known Use

1580, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of hostile was in 1580

Dictionary Entries Near hostile

Cite this Entry

“Hostile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hostile. Accessed 3 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

1
: of or relating to an enemy
hostile troops
2
: showing open resistance or opposition
a hostile critic
hostile to new things
3
: not hospitable : forbidding
a hostile environment
Etymology

from early French hostile or Latin hostilis, both meaning "hostile," from Latin hostis "stranger, enemy" — related to hospital, host entry 1

Legal Definition

hostile

adjective
hos·​tile
1
: having an intimidating, antagonistic, or offensive nature
a hostile work environment
2
a
: of or relating to an opposing party in a legal action
a hostile claim
b
: adverse to the interests of a party to a legal action
if the interests of the party joined involuntarily render him hostile to the original plaintiff, he must remain a defendant J. H. Friedenthal et al.
3
a
: adverse to or incompatible with the interests of a property owner
a hostile use
see also adverse possession at possession, easement by prescription at easement, prescription sense 1
b
: unwelcome by or contrary to the interests of corporate stockholders or management
a hostile takeover bid

More from Merriam-Webster on hostile

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