An opponent is a person or group that you compete or fight against in a game, argument, or conflict.
From Latin “opponere” meaning “to set against,” from “ob-” (against) and “ponere” (to place). It came into English through Old French as someone placed opposite you.
An opponent is literally someone ‘placed against’ you, like a mirror image on the other side. This shows why opponents can feel so personal: they stand exactly where you stand, just facing the opposite direction.
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