friend or foe

Meanings

1. 1phrasefixed phrase

   Someone who might be an ally or an enemy, used when it is not yet clear which side a person or thing is on.

   Grammar: Used as a fixed pair; it often follows 'whether' or 'be it': whether friend or foe.

   Patterns

   • be friend or foe
   • treat someone as friend or foe

   The guards could not tell whether the stranger was friend or foe.

   Is the new manager friend or foe?

   A good soldier must tell friend from foe quickly.

2. 2phrasefixed phrase

   Used to mean everyone, whether they are allies or enemies, to show that something applies to all people alike.

   Grammar: Often used after a verb like treat or welcome: she welcomed friend and foe alike, or friend or foe.

   Patterns

   • friend or foe alike

   The old chef fed anyone who knocked, friend or foe.

   The storm hit friend or foe alike.

   She greets all visitors politely, friend or foe.

Word forms

Common combinations

identify friend or foe

The radar system helps identify friend or foe.

treat as friend or foe

Voters treat each candidate as friend or foe.

whether friend or foe

Whether friend or foe, she gave everyone the same respect.

friend or foe alike

The famous host welcomed friend or foe alike.

tell friend from foe

In a crowd, it was hard to tell friend from foe.

Synonyms and how they differ

ally or enemy

Ally or enemy is plainer and more literal, while friend or foe has a slightly dramatic, storytelling tone.

for or against

For or against is about taking a side in a debate or vote, not about personal loyalty.

on our side or not

This is spoken and casual, and does not have the fixed, literary ring of friend or foe.

Opposites

Word family

friend noun

a person you like and trust

friendly adjective

kind and pleasant toward others

foe noun

an enemy or opponent, mostly literary

befriend verb

to become a friend of someone

Commonly confused: friend or foe or fraud?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “friend or foe”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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