malign
pronunciation
How to pronounce malign in British English:
UK [məˈlaɪn]
How to pronounce malign in American English:
US [məˈlaɪn]
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- Verb:
- speak unfavorably about
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- Adjective:
- evil or harmful in nature or influence
- having or exerting a malignant influence
Word Origin
- malign
- malign: [14] Malign comes, probably via Old French, from Latin malignus ‘wicked’. This was derived from malus ‘bad’, a word of unknown origin (some have tried to link it with English small). Malus is of course the starting point for a wide range of other English words, including malady [13] (ultimately from Vulgar Latin *male habitus ‘in bad condition’); malaise [18] (which originated in Old French as a conflation of mal aise ‘bad ease’); malapropism; malaria; malediction [15] (etymologically ‘evil saying’); malevolent [16] (literally ‘wishing evil’); malice [13] (from Latin malitia, a derivative of malus); and malingerer [18] (from French malingre, which may have been a compound of mal- and haingre ‘weak’). Malignant [16] comes from the present participle of Latin malignāre ‘act with malice’, a verb derived from malignus.=> malady, malaise, malaria, malignant, malingerer
- malign (adj.)
- early 14c., from Old French maligne "having an evil nature," from Latin malignus "wicked, bad-natured," from male "badly" (see mal-) + -gnus "born," from gignere "to bear, beget," from PIE root *gn- "to bear" (see genus).
- malign (v.)
- "to slander," mid-15c., from earlier more literal sense of "to plot, to contrive" (early 15c.), from Old French malignier "to plot, deceive, pervert," from Late Latin malignare "to do maliciously," from malignus (see malign (adj.)). Related: Maligned; maligning.
Antonym
Example
- 1. Cleopatra did supply herod with further reason to malign her in rome , however .
- 2. We still dwell in the valley of the shadow , lurk in its desolate places , peering from brambles and thickets at its mad , malign inhabitants .
- 3. We have seen no reason to change that verdict . But it is now clear that neither the dodgy sex nor the dubious business history should be the main reason for italians looking back on mr berlusconi as a disastrous , even malign , failure .
- 4. A senior isi official , speaking on the condition of anonymity under standard practice , sharply condemned the reports as " part of the malicious campaign to malign the spy organization " and said the isi would " continue to eradicate the menace of terrorism with or without the help of the west . "
- 5. Films nearly always depict big business as malign .