archenemy

noun

arch·​en·​e·​my (ˌ)ärch-ˈe-nə-mē How to pronounce archenemy (audio)
plural archenemies
: a principal enemy

Examples of archenemy in a Sentence

The two politicians were archenemies. The country went to war with its archenemy.
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.
Set some time after the events of Cox's original Daredevil Netflix show, which ran from 2015-2018, Matt has retired his vigilante cowl, while his archenemy, Wilson Fisk (Vincent D'Onofrio), sets his sights on the mayoral race in New York City. Nick Romano, EW.com, 20 Feb. 2025 But officials became unsettled when news broke that U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, a Cuban American Republican from Florida whom Cuba considers an archenemy, was likely to become the next U.S. secretary of state, sources who asked not to be named to speak of their interactions with Cuban officials, said. Nora Gámez Torres, Miami Herald, 24 Jan. 2025 The show follows a parallel timeline where Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man, is mentored by Norman Osborn, the alter-ego of his archenemy the Green Goblin, instead of Tony Stark like in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Jack Dunn, Variety, 29 Dec. 2024 That same event also revealed that Robert Downey Jr. will take play Doctor Doom, the Fantastic Four's traditional archenemy, in the MCU. Christian Holub, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for archenemy

Word History

First Known Use

1550, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of archenemy was in 1550

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Cite this Entry

“Archenemy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/archenemy. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

archenemy

noun
arch·​en·​e·​my (ˈ)ärch-ˈen-ə-mē How to pronounce archenemy (audio)
: a principal enemy

More from Merriam-Webster on archenemy

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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