Adversity

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ædˈvɝ.sɪ.ti/

Definitions

1. Difficult or unfortunate circumstances that create hardship and challenge one's ability to succeed or cope
2. Challenges or misfortunes that test a person's resilience and ability to navigate through difficult situations
3. Instances of hardship or struggle that pose obstacles to progress and require perseverance to overcome

Etymology: Adversity traces back to a Latin image of turning toward something. The Latin verb "advertere" combined "ad-" (toward) with "vertere" (to turn), so its past participle "adversus" meant "turned toward" or "facing," and from there "opposing" or "hostile." Adversitas, the noun built on that participle, described the state of facing something hostile or unfavourable. The journey into English ran through Old French "adversité," which carried the same sense of hardship and misfortune. Notably, the Latin "vertere" is also the source of words like "verse" and "version," so adversity shares a root with the idea of a line of text or a changed form. What began as a neutral gesture of turning to face a problem became, over centuries, the everyday word for life's hardships.

Synonyms: hardship, difficulty, misfortune, challenge, setback

Antonyms: prosperity, success, advantage, benefit, fortune