Definition of malicious
: having or showing a desire to cause harm to someone : given to, marked by, or arising from malice malicious gossip
maliciously
adverbmaliciousness
nounIndulge Your Inner Word Nerd
Examples of malicious in a Sentence
… she is an inspired hater, and thrills to malicious descriptions of long-forgotten, nameless individuals whose bad luck it was to live near her, or to have met her socially. —Joyce Carol Oates, New York Times Book Review, 5 Nov. 2000
A cunning and malicious crook who suckered him without half trying. —Philip Roth, American Pastoral, 1997
Frank sensed her discomfort and took a certain malicious pleasure in it, enacting all the while his perfect innocence. —John Updike, The Afterlife, 1994
a malicious distortion of the truth
the neighborhood chatterbox has again been spreading malicious gossip
Recent Examples of malicious from the Web
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In December, three Romanians operating a cyber fraud scheme were extradited to the United States and indicted for infecting 60,000 computers, sending 11 million malicious emails and stealing at least $4 million.
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The security firm Checkpoint on Thursday uncovered dozens of Android applications that infected users’ devices with malicious ad-click software.
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Virginia State Police said Travis A. Ball of Richmond is being held without bond on charges that include malicious wounding and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
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The 27-year-old is being held without bond on charges that include malicious wounding and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
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Katelyn’s court cases The 12 pending cases referenced in this report include 18 felonies and misdemeanors, evenly divided between assault/battery and malicious destruction of property.
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But Katy's version of events wasn't nearly as malicious as Taylor let on.
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No damage was reported at that second site, but malicious mischief was suspected.
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Yahoo Inc. is warning users of potentially malicious activity on their accounts between 2015 and 2016.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'malicious'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
malicious, malevolent, and malice
Malicious and malevolent are close in meaning, since both refer to ill will that desires to see someone else suffer. But while malevolent suggests deep and lasting dislike, malicious usually means petty and spiteful. Malicious gossipers are often simply envious of a neighbor's good fortune. Vandals may take malicious pleasure in destroying and defacing property but usually don't truly hate the owners. Malice is an important legal concept, which has to be proved in order to convict someone of certain crimes such as first-degree murder.
Origin and Etymology of malicious
see malice
Other Legal Terms
MALICIOUS Defined for English Language Learners
malicious
playDefinition of malicious for English Language Learners
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: having or showing a desire to cause harm to another person : having or showing malice
MALICIOUS Defined for Kids
malicious
playDefinition of malicious for Students
: feeling or showing a desire to cause harm to another person malicious gossip
maliciously
adverbLaw Dictionary
malicious
playLegal Definition of malicious
: given to, marked by, or arising from malice malicious destruction of property
maliciously
adverbmaliciousness
nounLearn More about malicious
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See words that rhyme with malicious Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for malicious Spanish Central: Translation of malicious Nglish: Translation of malicious for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of malicious for Arabic speakers
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