nemesis

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˈnɛməsəs/ UK /ˈnɛmɪsɪs/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
an inescapable agent of someone's downfall or a long-standing rival

The detective finally cornered his lifelong nemesis.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · an inescapable agent of... rival adversaryarchenemydownfall retribution bane scourge

Opposites

ally friend champion

Word family

Related forms nemesisesnemeses

Etymology

From Ancient Greek Nemesis (Νέμεσις), the goddess of retribution, from nemein ('to distribute, allot what is due').

Νέμεσις Ancient Greek némein Ancient Greek

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Topics

Describing Qualities

# nemesis

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˈnɛməsəs
**IPA (UK):** ˈnɛmɪsɪs

## Meanings
1. an inescapable agent of someone's downfall or a long-standing rival

## Examples
- The detective finally cornered his lifelong nemesis.

## Synonyms
- rival
- adversary
- archenemy
- downfall
- retribution
- bane
- scourge

## Antonyms
- ally
- friend
- champion

## Related Forms
- nemesises
- nemeses

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: Νέμεσις
- Root: némein

## Etymology
From Ancient Greek Nemesis (Νέμεσις), the goddess of retribution, from nemein ('to distribute, allot what is due').

## AI Etymology
Nemesis is from Ancient Greek Nemesis (Νέμεσις), the goddess of retribution, from nemein ('to distribute, allot what is due'). Important recorded forms include Νέμεσις (Ancient Greek) and némein (Ancient Greek). The current sense covers an inescapable agent of someone's downfall or a long-standing rival. The wider family includes related words such as nemesises and nemeses.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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nemesis

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