malicious

C2 Topic:Describing Qualities

US /məˈlɪʃəs/ See IPA manual

Freq #15076

Meanings

1

adj
Intending to harm or hurt others; full of spite.

She spread malicious rumours about her coworker.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · intending to harm or hurt... spiteful baleful baneful

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

malicious mischief
deliberate and wrongful damage to another person's property

Adjective + noun

Etymology

From Middle English malicious, from Old French malicios, from Latin malitiōsus, from malitia (“malice”), from malus (“bad”). Displaced native Middle English ivelwilled and ivelwilly (“malicious”), related to Old English yfelwillende (literally “evil-willing”). By surface analysis, malice + -ious.

malicious Middle English malicios Old French malitiōsus Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# malicious

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /məˈlɪʃəs/
**Frequency rank:** 15076

## Meanings
1. Intending to harm or hurt others; full of spite.

## Examples
- She spread malicious rumours about her coworker.

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: malicious
- Root: malicios
- Root: malitiōsus

## Etymology
From Middle English malicious, from Old French malicios, from Latin malitiōsus, from malitia (“malice”), from malus (“bad”). Displaced native Middle English ivelwilled and ivelwilly (“malicious”), related to Old English yfelwillende (literally “evil-willing”). By surface analysis, malice + -ious.

## AI Etymology
Malicious is from Middle English malicious, from Old French malicios, from Latin malitiōsus, from malitia (“malice”), from malus (“bad”). Displaced native Middle English ivelwilled and ivelwilly (“malicious”), related to Old English yfelwillende (literally “evil-willing”). By surface analysis, malice + -ious. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern adjectival form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include malicious (Middle English), malicios (Old French), and malitiōsus (Latin). Current senses include intending to harm or hurt others; full of spite.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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