frenemy
noun
fren·e·my
ˈfre-nə-mē 
plural frenemies
informal
: a person who is or pretends to be a friend but who is also in some ways an enemy or rival
In Hollywood, everyone has lots of frenemies, usually people who are doing comparatively well at any given moment.—
Pete Clark
Pete ClarkIn an awkward awards ceremony, Phil [Mickelson] and Tiger [Woods] stood on the 18th green together as frenemies. Phil held up the crystal trophy for the tournament title, while Tiger squirreled away a $10 million bonus for winning the FedEx Cup …—Selena Roberts
Selena RobertsExamples of frenemy in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
In the middle of the month, Sadie Sandler leads her first movie as a college freshman in a frenemy situation with her roommate.
—Madeleine Janz, PEOPLE, 2 Apr. 2026
Ruffalo played Matt, her geeky best friend and eventual love interest, and Greer played Lucy, Jenna’s lifelong frenemy.
—Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2026
Much like his frenemy, Burgos takes his political messaging to the public via Instagram and TikTok, trying to unspool wonky and complicated housing policy in 60-second clips.
—Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 23 Mar. 2026
Chief among them was Tom Hardy’s fan-favorite character of Alfie Solomons, the Camden Town gang leader and frenemy of Tommy.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 23 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for frenemy
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Madeleine Janz, PEOPLE, 2 Apr. 2026
Ruffalo played Matt, her geeky best friend and eventual love interest, and Greer played Lucy, Jenna’s lifelong frenemy.
—Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 25 Mar. 2026
Much like his frenemy, Burgos takes his political messaging to the public via Instagram and TikTok, trying to unspool wonky and complicated housing policy in 60-second clips.
—Matthew Sedacca, Curbed, 23 Mar. 2026
Chief among them was Tom Hardy’s fan-favorite character of Alfie Solomons, the Camden Town gang leader and frenemy of Tommy.
—Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 23 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for frenemy
Cite this Entry
“Frenemy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/frenemy. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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