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Malaise, which ultimately traces back to Old French, has been part of English since the 18th century. One of its most notable uses, however, came in 1979—well, sort of. U.S. President Jimmy Carter never actually used the word in his July 15 televised address, but it became known as the "malaise speech" all the same. In the speech, Carter described the U.S. as a nation facing a "crisis of confidence" and rife with "paralysis and stagnation and drift." He spoke of a "national malaise" a few days later, and it's not hard to see why the "malaise" name stuck. The speech was praised by some and criticized by others, but whatever your politics, it remains a vivid illustration of the meaning of malaise.

Examples of malaise in a Sentence

The symptoms include headache, malaise, and fatigue. An infected person will feel a general malaise. The country's current economic problems are symptoms of a deeper malaise.

Recent Examples on the Web In the footage screened, the gangly teen hangs out with a possible crush, watching cheesy game shows and experiencing an oddly comfortable mid-summer malaise of being young and bored and having not much to do. — Ben Croll, Variety, 30 May 2022 The purpose of this book is to understand why there is a malaise in heterosexual relationships and to explain this in sociological rather than psychological terms. — Anahid Nersessian, The New York Review of Books, 13 Jan. 2022 And for those who are eligible, voters say, there is a malaise that comes from watching your candidates lose time and again. — BostonGlobe.com, 8 Oct. 2021 Perhaps, even at times of natural disaster or war, when travel becomes less viable, technology might create the panacea for the national malaise. — Michael Alpiner, Forbes, 31 Aug. 2021 By the end of it, the Brewers were lodged at 17-19, and the malaise deepened to 20-24 before the Brewers righted the ship. — Jr Radcliffe, Journal Sentinel, 10 June 2022 Democrats from the district and beyond worked hard to get Hill elected, and her resignation led to malaise among some party activists. — Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2022 But our apathy also seems related to a pandemic malaise—an inability or unwillingness to devote more cognitive and material resources to a problem that refuses to leave us alone. — Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 23 May 2022 But those efforts have led to a widespread malaise — as well as debt defaults at huge developers like Evergrande. — New York Times, 12 Apr. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'malaise.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.