Learn Romanian › dușman
dușman
enemy /duʃˈman/
noun#1609 most common
Also: foe, adversary
Example sentences
Ion nu este dușmanul meu.
Ion is not my enemy.
Ea are un dușman la serviciu.
She has an enemy at work.
Cei doi frați au devenit dușmani după moartea tatălui lor.
The two brothers became enemies after their father's death.
Armata a învins dușmanul într-o singură bătălie.
The army defeated the enemy in a single battle.
Diplomatul a reușit să transforme un vechi dușman într-un aliat de încredere.
The diplomat managed to turn an old enemy into a trusted ally.
Istoricii dezbat dacă acel popor a fost cu adevărat un dușman de moarte al imperiului, sau doar un rival economic supraestimat de cronicarii vremii.
Historians debate whether that people was truly a mortal enemy of the empire, or just an economic rival overestimated by the chroniclers of the time.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | dușman | dușmani |
| Genitive | dușmanului | dușmanilor |
| Accusative | dușman | dușmani |
| Vocative | dușmanule | dușmanilor |
Word family
dușmănieenmity, hostility
dușmănoshostile, spiteful
a dușmănito bear hostility toward, to treat as an enemy
dușmancăfemale enemy
Etymology
Romanian borrowed dușman from Ottoman Turkish düșman during the centuries of Ottoman political and administrative contact in the region. The Turkish word itself came from Persian دشمن (došman/dušman), meaning enemy. Persian formed this word as a compound of duš- (bad, ill) and man/manah (mind), so the original sense was close to 'evil-minded one'.
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