Definition of malignant
1a obsolete : malcontent, disaffectedb : evil in nature, influence, or effect : injurious a powerful and malignant influencec : passionately and relentlessly malevolent : aggressively malicious the malignant tongues of gossipers
2 : tending to produce death or deterioration malignant malaria; especially : tending to infiltrate, metastasize, and terminate fatally a malignant tumor
malignantly
adverbFrom the M-W Editors
Examples of malignant in a Sentence
a highly malignant form of cancer
a powerful and malignant influence
Recent Examples of malignant from the Web
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Meanwhile, Pettey warns that cancers of the eye itself, including squamous cell carcinomas and malignant melanomas, also can result from sun exposure.
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In the new study, all 377 patients were hospitalized for abdominal surgeries, about 90 percent of them involving removal of a malignant tumor.
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Doctors removed her uterus, her ovaries, appendix, a foot of her colon and several liters of malignant fluid to eradicate a series of tumors.
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The device had sprayed malignant cells around inside Dr. Reed’s abdomen, leaving her with an advanced, Stage 4 cancer.
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This type of behavior has been a consistent Knicks malpractice that has turned distressingly malignant during the listing team presidency of Phil Jackson.
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Rylee was transported to Arnold Palmer Children's Hospital in Orlando, where doctors removed the malignant tumor, Medulloblastoma, on her brain stem, her family said.
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Some gynecologists are still using the device, however, at times doing the cutting inside surgical bags to try and prevent malignant tissue from spreading into the abdomen.
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Mr. Ford had been undergoing treatment for malignant liposarcoma, a rare form of cancer, since September 2014.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'malignant'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of malignant
Late Latin malignant-, malignans, present participle of malignari
MALIGNANT Defined for English Language Learners
malignant
playDefinition of malignant for English Language Learners
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medical : very serious and dangerous : tending or likely to grow and spread in a rapid and uncontrolled way that can cause death
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: very evil
MALIGNANT Defined for Kids
Medical Dictionary
malignant
playMedical Definition of malignant
1: tending to produce death or deterioration malignant malaria; especially : tending to infiltrate, metastasize, and terminate fatally malignant tumors—compare benign 1
2: of unfavorable prognosis : not responding favorably to treatment psychotic reactions with a malignant trend
Learn More about malignant
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See words that rhyme with malignant Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for malignant Spanish Central: Translation of malignant Nglish: Translation of malignant for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of malignant for Arabic speakers
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