ill feeling
B2Formal to Neutral
Definition
Meaning
Unfriendly or hostile feeling between people, often lasting resentment or animosity.
A state of mutual dislike, tension, or bitterness arising from a past disagreement, slight, or conflict; can refer to both individual and group emotions.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Typically an uncountable noun phrase, often used with 'no' (e.g., 'no ill feeling') or quantifiers like 'a lot of', 'some', 'considerable'. It implies a cause or history, not a spontaneous emotion.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Slight preference for the hyphenated form 'ill-feeling' in older or more formal British writing. Both variants are understood in both dialects.
Connotations
Slightly more formal in American English, commonly used in news/journalistic contexts in both.
Frequency
More frequent in British English corpus data, but still standard in American English.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
There is [quantifier] ill feeling between X and Y over Z.The decision caused (considerable) ill feeling.Despite the argument, they parted with no ill feeling.Ill feeling persists/remains/lingers.Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “No hard feelings (a close pragmatic synonym in specific contexts).”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Often used regarding mergers, layoffs, or disputes between departments: 'The restructuring caused significant ill feeling among the senior staff.'
Academic
Used in history, political science, or sociology to describe group relations: 'The treaty left a legacy of ill feeling between the two nations.'
Everyday
Describing fallout from personal disputes: 'I hope there's no ill feeling after our disagreement yesterday.'
Technical
Rare; more likely in psychology/sociology texts discussing intergroup conflict.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- N/A – not used as a verb.
American English
- N/A – not used as a verb.
adverb
British English
- N/A – not used as an adverb.
American English
- N/A – not used as an adverb.
adjective
British English
- N/A – 'ill-feeling' can be used attributively in British English: 'an ill-feeling atmosphere'.
- The dispute created an ill-feeling dynamic in the office.
American English
- N/A – Attributive use is rarer; 'an atmosphere of ill feeling' is preferred.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The football match ended with no ill feeling between the teams.
- I don't want any ill feeling because of my decision.
- The pay cuts caused considerable ill feeling among the workforce.
- Despite their political differences, they managed to debate without ill feeling.
- The historical annexation of the territory continues to be a source of deep-seated ill feeling in the region.
- The mediation aimed to address the underlying ill feeling that had poisoned their business relationship for years.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a sick (ill) relationship where the feeling between people is unhealthy.
Conceptual Metaphor
CONFLICT IS A DISEASE / NEGATIVE EMOTION IS A CONTAMINANT (e.g., 'poisoned the atmosphere', 'bad blood').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Не переводите дословно как 'больное чувство' или 'плохое чувство'. Это калька. Стандартные переводы: 'недоброжелательность', 'неприязнь', 'враждебность', 'обида' (в контексте).
- Избегайте перевода 'ill' как 'больной' в этом контексте.
Common Mistakes
- Using as an adjective (*'He is ill-feeling towards her' – incorrect). It's a noun phrase. Correct: 'He has ill feeling towards her.'
- Confusing with 'bad feeling', which is less formal and more immediate.
- Using plural *'ill feelings'. Generally non-count.
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following sentences uses 'ill feeling' INCORRECTLY?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Generally, no. 'Ill feeling' is treated as an uncountable (mass) noun phrase. You can have 'a lot of ill feeling' or 'some ill feeling', but not typically *'ill feelings'.
They are very close. 'Hard feelings' is more common in spoken, everyday American English, often used in the negative ('no hard feelings'). 'Ill feeling' is slightly more formal and can describe deeper, more persistent resentment, especially in writing.
Yes, it's a fixed noun phrase or compound noun. The words together have a specific meaning that isn't just the sum of 'ill' and 'feeling'.
Not really. It implies a more enduring state of resentment or animosity that lingers after an event. Sudden anger would be 'annoyance' or 'anger'. Ill feeling is what remains afterwards.