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Antagonist

Noun CEFR B2
ænˈtæɡənɪst

Definitions

  1. An opponent or enemy.
  2. One who antagonizes or stirs.
  3. A chemical that binds to a receptor but does not produce a physiological response, blocking the action of other agonist chemicals, such as endogenous chemical messengers.
  4. The main character or force opposing the protagonist in a literary work or drama.
  5. A muscle that acts in opposition to another.

Equivalents

34 more languages

Examples

“our antagonists in these controversies”
“Antagonist of Heav’ns Almightie King”
“[H]is eyes vacant—his face⟳ haggard—his head drooping, the spectacle of such an antagonist to the vigorous Edward, moved only pity in the few, and ridicule in the many.”
“2001: The calcium antagonists represent⟳ one of the top ten classes of prescription drugs in terms of commercial value, with worldwide sales of nearly $10 billion in 1999. — Leslie Iversen, Drugs: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford 2001, p. 41)”
“So God forbid⟳ I'm seen just as an average human being / I mean⟳, imagine⟳ if antagonists lacked any evil scheme”
“A flexor, which bends a part, is the antagonist of an extensor, which extends it.”

CEFR level

B2
Upper Intermediate
This word is part of the CEFR B2 vocabulary — upper intermediate level.
See all B2 English words →

See also

Antagonistic Antagonistical Antagonistically Antagonists antagonization Antagonize

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