Adjacent Words

Antagonism definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ANTAG'ONISM, n. Opposition of action; counteraction of things or principles.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a state of deep-seated ill-will [syn: hostility, enmity, antagonism]
2: the relation between opposing principles or forces or factors; "the inherent antagonism of capitalism and socialism"
3: an actively expressed feeling of dislike and hostility
4: (biochemistry) interference in or inhibition of the physiological action of a chemical substance by another having a similar structure

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: 1835 1. a. opposition of a conflicting force, tendency, or principle <the antagonism of democracy to dictatorship> b. actively expressed opposition or hostility <antagonism between factions> 2. opposition in physiological action; especially interaction of two or more substances such that the action of any one of them on living cells or tissues is lessened Synonyms: see enmity

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. active opposition or hostility. Etymology: F antagonisme (as ANTAGONIST)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Antagonism An*tag"o*nism, n. [Gr. ?, fr. ? to struggle against; ? against + ? to contend or struggle, ? contest: cf. F. antagonisme. See Agony.] Opposition of action; counteraction or contrariety of things or principles. Note: We speak of antagonism between two things, to or against a thing, and sometimes with a thing.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(antagonisms) Antagonism between people is hatred or dislike between them. Antagonisms are instances of this. There is still much antagonism between trades unions and the oil companies... Old antagonisms resurfaced. = hostility N-UNCOUNT: also N in pl

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Opposition, contrariety, repugnance, contradiction, clashing, incompatibility, inconsistency, incongruity, discord, discordance, discordancy, disharmony, dissonance, conflict, hostility, enmity, feud.

Moby Thesaurus

abhorrence, abomination, aggression, aggressiveness, allergy, animosity, animus, annulling, antipathy, antithesis, argumentation, aversion, backlash, bad blood, bellicism, bellicosity, belligerence, belligerency, chauvinism, clash, clashing, cold sweat, collision, combativeness, competition, con, conflict, confrontation, confutation, contention, contentiousness, contradiction, contradistinction, contraindication, contraposition, contrariety, contrariness, contrast, controversy, counteraction, counterposition, counterworking, crankiness, creeping flesh, cross-purposes, crotchetiness, despitefulness, difference, disaccord, disaccordance, disagreement, discord, discordance, discordancy, discrepancy, disgust, disharmony, disparity, dissension, dissent, dissidence, dissonance, disunion, disunity, divergence, diversity, enmity, faction, ferocity, fierceness, fight, fractiousness, friction, hate, hatred, horror, hostility, inaccordance, incongruity, inconsistency, inequality, inimicalness, interference, jarring, jingoism, kick, loathing, malevolence, malice, malignity, martialism, militancy, militarism, mortal horror, nausea, negation, negativeness, nonconformity, noncooperation, nullification, obstinacy, oppositeness, opposition, opposure, oppugnance, oppugnancy, perverseness, perversity, polarity, pugnaciousness, pugnacity, quarrelsomeness, rancor, reaction, recalcitrance, recoil, refractoriness, renitency, repercussion, repugnance, repulsion, resistance, revolt, rivalry, saber rattling, showdown, shuddering, spite, spitefulness, strife, swimming upstream, truculence, uncooperativeness, unfriendliness, unharmoniousness, unpeacefulness, variance, vying, warmongering, warpath, withstanding