Phrase guide

be one's own worst enemy

verb · 1 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /biː wʌnz‿ˌəʊn wɜːst‿ˈɛnɪmi/
  • General-American: /bi wʌnz‿ˌoʊn wɜɹst‿ˈɛnəmi/
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australia: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

verb

Meaning 1

To act contrary to one's own interests; to cause problems for oneself; to self-sabotage.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: idiomatic, intransitive, irregular

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

2 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Finnish: olla itsensä pahin vihollinen — to act contrary to one’s own interests
  • Portuguese: ser o seu pior inimigo — to act contrary to one’s own interests