Invaders

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈveɪ.də(ɹ)z/

Definitions

1. Those who breach another's security with hostile intentions or force
2. People who enter a place by hostile means to take control or cause harm
3. Individuals who forcibly come into foreign lands or territories as hostile forces

Etymology: The word is a plural, so its story is really the story of the suffix and the verb underneath it. "Invaders" is the plural of "invader," which is formed from the verb "invade" plus the agent ending "-er." That ending has a long road behind it: it traces back through Old French "-ier" to Latin "-arius," a suffix used to name a person connected with a thing or activity, and it reached English as Old English "-ere," which is why so many English words for workers and doers end in "-er." "Invade" itself is the more interesting half. It comes from Latin "invadere," meaning to go into or attack, built from "in-" (into) and "vadere" (to go). The sense of walking or striding into a place is still visible in the word's core, and the armed, hostile meaning developed on top of that literal motion of going in. The noun carries the same picture forward: an invader is, quite literally, one who goes into somewhere they should not.

Synonyms: intruders, assailants, occupants, conquerors, raiders

Antonyms: defenders, protectors, guardians, hosts, friends