malevolent

adjective

ma·​lev·​o·​lent mə-ˈle-və-lənt 

1

: having, showing, or coming from intense often vicious ill will, spite, or hatred

… scheming, of both the benevolent and malevolent sort, designed to steer or derail the course of love.

—Don Aucoin

And then there's Helen, the malevolent Sicilian neighbor who wishes everyone dead …

—Judith Newman

2

: productive of harm or evil

But there is also a strange malevolent presence on board, sensed by the team's telepath.

—Jennifer Ouellette

Several notable films … specifically mention Wall Street as shorthand for the malevolent influences threatening society …

—John W. Jordan

The Japanese have a wary affection for foxes. … While not always malevolent, they're noted pranksters, and a good deal of time is spent trying to keep them happy.

—Hanya Yanagihara and Kyoko Hamada

malevolently adverb

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On the Origin of Malevolent

That malevolent begins with male- does not imply any connection with gender. The word's initial component comes ultimately from the Latin adverb male "badly"; English male "a man or a boy," by contrast, descends from the unrelated Latin noun masculus "male." Malevolent was taken into English directly from the Latin malevolens "ill-disposed, spiteful," which paired male with volens, the present participle of a verb meaning "to wish." In Latin, the combination literally meant "wishing ill." The "wishing" component of malevolent may also be found in its antonym benevolent "kind and generous" (from Latin benevolens, literally, "wishing well") and in a rare English word, somnivolency ("a sleep-inducing agent"), in which it is yoked with somni- "sleep" (from Latin somnus) in a compound literally meaning "inclination to sleep."

Synonyms of malevolent

• malicious
• vicious
• cruel
• hateful

Examples of malevolent in a Sentence

There was no acknowledgment of the effects of cycle upon cycle of malevolent defeat, of the injury of seeing one generation rise above the cusp of poverty only to be indignantly crushed, of the impact of repeating tsunamis of violence … —Douglas A. Blackmon, Slavery By Another Name, 2008

The sky looks heavy enough to sink and crush us when we see another twister bullying across the fields—a squat, malevolent-looking wedge. —Priit J. Vesilind, National Geographic, April 2004

No bigger than most house cats, it is possessed of such formidable armor and malevolent mien that when the makers of the latest Godzilla epic went looking for a prototype, they selected this lizard … —Peter Benchley, National Geographic, April 1999

The predominant spirit is very un-American; a kind of malevolent, drifting determinism pervades human beings who cannot, or do not want to, cope. —John Fowles, Atlantic, August 1986

the novel grossly oversimplified the conflict as a struggle between relentlessly malevolent villains on one side and faultless saints on the other

Recent Examples on the Web

King is said to have had nightmares that night — his son running through endless hallways, pursued by a malevolent presence — inspiring the plot of the famous movie. —Noreen Kompanik, Boston Herald, 26 Oct. 2025

Needless to say, malevolent spirits combined with a constantly escalating chat make for a very unpleasant evening. —PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025

Pennywise — the iconic, malevolent shapeshifting entity that often takes the form of a dancing clown and was first introduced in Stephen King's 1986 novel It — suddenly and mysteriously appeared on five different continents on Tuesday. —Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Oct. 2025

The pic, from director Marcel Walz and Anathema LLC, follows what happens when a carefree night of partying takes a sinister turn when a group of friends stumble upon an ancient curse and are forced to survive until dawn as a malevolent force begins hunting them. —Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 23 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Latin malevolent-, malevolens, from male badly + volent-, volens, present participle of velle to wish — more at mal-, will

First Known Use

1509, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for malevolent

• benevolent
• prevalent

Kids Definition

malevolent

adjective

ma·​lev·​o·​lent mə-ˈlev-ə-lənt 

: having or showing ill will : spiteful

malevolently adverb