Opponents or enemies in a conflict, competition, or struggle.
From Latin 'adversarius,' meaning 'opposite' or 'hostile,' derived from 'adversus' meaning 'turned toward.' It entered English in the 1200s through Norman French influences.
The Latin root 'versus' (meaning 'against') appears in sports notation as 'vs.' and is the reason 'adversary' and 'verse' (lines of poetry) share the same root—'versus' literally meant 'a turning,' connecting opposition and poetic lines.
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