adj
malevolent
muh-LEH-vuh-luhnt
adj
1
Wishing harm on others; having ill will.
"The villain's malevolent grin unsettled everyone in the room."
"He accused his rival of spreading malevolent rumors."
How to Use Malevolent
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishWanting bad things to happen to other people; the opposite of benevolent.
Easily confused with
benevolent →
malevolence
Common pairings
malevolent intent
a malevolent smile
malevolent force
Word Forms
more malevolent comparative, most malevolent superlative
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Etymology
From Latin male ("badly") and volens ("wishing"), from velle ("to wish") — literally "wishing badly" on someone.