hate

¹

[ heyt ]

verb (used with object)

, hat·ed, hat·ing.

1. to dislike intensely or passionately; feel extreme aversion for or extreme hostility toward; detest:

   to hate the enemy;

   to hate bigotry.

   Synonyms: despise, execrate, loathe

   Antonyms: love

2. to be unwilling; dislike:

   I hate to do it.

verb (used without object)

, hat·ed, hat·ing.

1. to feel intense dislike, or extreme aversion or hostility.

noun

1. intense dislike; extreme aversion or hostility.
2. the object of extreme aversion or hostility.
3. (in a video game) the focus or targeting of an enemy on a player character; enmity; aggro: As a tank, pretty much your number-one priority is getting and holding hate.

   The Black Mage got hate, but it’s really his own fault for casting those level-four spells back to back.

   As a tank, pretty much your number-one priority is getting and holding hate.

adjective

1. noting or relating to acts that are motivated by hatred, prejudice, or intolerance:

   a hate crime;

   a hate group;

   hate mail.

verb phrase

1. Informal. to show hate toward, criticize, or belittle, usually unfairly:

   Don't hate on him just because he wins all the time.

hate-

²

1. a combining form describing something that one does but professes to dislike and that may indicate conflicting love/hate emotions, as in hate-read hate-kiss hate-sex

hate

/ heɪt /

verb

1. to dislike (something) intensely; detest
2. intr to be unwilling (to be or do something)

noun

1. intense dislike
2. informal.
   a person or thing that is hated (esp in the phrase pet hate )
3. modifier expressing or arousing feelings of hatred

   hate mail

Derived Forms

• ˈhateable, adjective

Other Words From

• hat·er noun
• self-hate noun
• un·hat·ed adjective
• un·hat·ing adjective
• un·hat·ing·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of hate¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English hat(i)en, Old English hatian (verb); cognate with Dutch haten, Old Norse hata, Gothic hatan, German hassen

Word History and Origins

Origin of hate¹

Old English hatian; related to Old Norse hata, Old Saxon hatōn, Old High German hazzēn

Idioms and Phrases

In addition to the idiom beginning with hate , also see somebody up there loves (hates) me .

Synonym Study

Hate, abhor, detest, abominate imply feeling intense dislike or aversion toward something. Hate, the simple and general word, suggests passionate dislike and a feeling of enmity: to hate autocracy. Abhor expresses a deep-rooted horror and a sense of repugnance or complete rejection: to abhor cruelty; Nature abhors a vacuum. Detest implies intense, even vehement, dislike and antipathy, besides a sense of disdain: to detest a combination of ignorance and arrogance. Abominate expresses a strong feeling of disgust and repulsion toward something thought of as unworthy, unlucky, or the like: to abominate treachery.

Example Sentences

I don’t want my children or yours to grow up in a country where Big Tech companies traffic in hate, division, and exploitation, which lead to real-world violence, depression, and suicide.

From Salon

It was hated by some, hailed by others.

From BBC

AJ: First of all, I hate the fact that it did happen.

From Salon

I was hemming and hawing if I should even put this in because I hate to blow up a spot.

From New York Times

The force said body cam footage of the incident did not show its officers tell her the report being investigated was being treated as a "non-crime hate incident".

From BBC

Related Words

• abhor
• despise
• detest
• loathe
• scorn
• shun