friend
- n a person you know well and regard with affection and trust
he was my best friend at the university - n an associate who provides cooperation or assistance
- n a person with whom you are acquainted
we are friends of the family - n a person who backs a politician or a team etc.
they are friends of the library - n a member of the Religious Society of Friends founded by George Fox (the Friends have never called themselves Quakers)
friend of the court
- n an adviser to the court on some matter of law who is not a party to the case; usually someone who wants to influence the outcome of a lawsuit involving matters of wide public interest