1
as in vigilante
one who inflicts punishment in return for an injury or offense
Batman is the Joker's main nemesis and always foils his wicked plots
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in punishment
suffering, loss, or hardship imposed in response to a crime or offense
social ostracism was once society's nemesis for those who defied its sexual mores
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in curse
a source of harm or misfortune
irrationality is the nemesis of democracy, for good government depends upon the wisdom of the electorate
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nemesis
In 1979, Beijing invaded Vietnam, ostensibly to teach Hanoi a lesson for entering into an alliance with the Soviet Union, then China’s nemesis, and for invading Cambodia, which Beijing was supporting.
—
M. Taylor Fravel, Foreign Affairs, 18 July 2025
Hosting their old nemesis, Seattle, in a divisional-round playoff game on Jan. 17, 2016.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 16 July 2025
That’s all Pierce, the former Celtic forward and long-time Heat nemesis, needed as a takeoff point during his Fox Sports Speak show.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 21 June 2025
Superman’s nemesis, Lex Luthor, played with quicksilver menace by Nicholas Hoult, is now a fascist tech billionaire — the CEO of LutherCorp — who has his tentacles everywhere: in industry, the U.S. government, and foreign nations.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for nemesis
M. Taylor Fravel, Foreign Affairs, 18 July 2025
Hosting their old nemesis, Seattle, in a divisional-round playoff game on Jan. 17, 2016.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 16 July 2025
That’s all Pierce, the former Celtic forward and long-time Heat nemesis, needed as a takeoff point during his Fox Sports Speak show.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 21 June 2025
Superman’s nemesis, Lex Luthor, played with quicksilver menace by Nicholas Hoult, is now a fascist tech billionaire — the CEO of LutherCorp — who has his tentacles everywhere: in industry, the U.S. government, and foreign nations.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 8 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for nemesis
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nemesis
Noun
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Comment threads, whether on public forums or a closed, women-only dating safety app, welcome, and even invite, vigilante justice.—
Elliot Williams,
CNN Money,
25 July 2025
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Think Batman set in the slums of Georgian London; Maximus is a literal Duke by day and vigilante by night, obsessed with avenging the death of his parents.—
American Booksellers Association,
USA Today,
25 July 2025
Noun
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Mackenzie sued, arguing that under the Constitution, her American birth gave her citizenship as a right, not a privilege, to be removed only as punishment for a crime or through voluntary expatriation.—
Marcia Biederman,
Hartford Courant,
13 July 2025
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In April, the U.S. government revoked all South Sudanese visas as punishment for the country after its government refused to accept a deportee who was in fact from the Democratic Republic of Congo.—
Elizabeth Shackelford,
Chicago Tribune,
11 July 2025
Noun
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This is both a blessing and a curse in the list production process.—
Maggie McGrath,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
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And after that, the Kennedy curse became this sort of wide-ranging explanation for a lot of things that were happening.—
Andrea Wurzburger,
People.com,
16 July 2025
Noun
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Anyone who dared challenge the prevailing narrative faced the wrath of a ravenous cancel culture.—
David Oliver,
USA Today,
22 July 2025
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That patience has only earned Powell the president’s wrath.—
Paolo Confino,
Fortune,
16 July 2025
Noun
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Be More Aggressive About Debt Elimination While not all debt is bad, high-interest ones, such as credit cards, personal loans, or payday loans, can be the bane of your wealth building and retirement planning efforts.—
True Tamplin,
Forbes.com,
18 July 2025
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There was a time when the Mojito was the bane of bartenders back in the early aughts when the drink was popular but the craft cocktail movement hadn’t really found its sea legs yet.—
Jeremy Repanich,
Robb Report,
11 July 2025
Noun
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Without visibility, companies risk blind spots that could derail multimillion-dollar deals or trigger regulatory penalties.—
Pukar Hamal,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
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The state has executed 594 inmates in the modern death penalty era (since 1976).—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
1 Aug. 2025
Noun
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While these lizards are not seen as a threat to humans, dogs or cats, Thompson officials noted that people should not attempt to approach Goose.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
31 July 2025
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Microsoft said the ability to cause infected devices to trust malicious sites allows the threat actor to maintain persistence, likely for use in intelligence collection.—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
31 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nemesis.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nemesis. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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