public enemy number one

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

There are more than 1,400 pests and diseases on the government's plant health risk register, but Ips has been labelled "public enemy number one".

From BBC • Aug. 30, 2025

Another waste turned public enemy number one, CO2,is an industrial gaseous effluent with low economic value.

From Science Daily • Feb. 1, 2024

The resulting article had the headline: “How Warner Bros. Discovery C.E.O. David Zaslav became public enemy number one in Hollywood.”

From New York Times • Jul. 5, 2023

You say, "Perfectionism is public enemy number one."

From Salon • Apr. 25, 2022

Ellen and Tim pick me up in the morning so that I won’t have to face the carport because I am officially Patrick Thomas’s public enemy number one.

From "Dumplin'" by Julie Murphy