noun
malaise
muh-LAYZ
noun
1
A vague feeling of physical discomfort or unease, often an early sign of illness.
"She woke up with a mild malaise and a slight fever."
2
A general sense of unease, dissatisfaction, or low morale in a group or society.
"A deep economic malaise settled over the country during the recession."
"There was a sense of malaise among staff after the layoffs were announced."
How to Use Malaise
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA vague sense that something is wrong, whether it is your body feeling off or a whole society feeling down.
Common pairings
a general malaise
economic malaise
a sense of malaise
Word Forms
malaises plural
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She woke up with a mild _____ and a slight fever.
Etymology
From French malaise, literally "ill ease" — mal- ("bad") plus aise ("ease").