MALIGNANT Synonyms: 88 Similar and Opposite Words

malignant

adjective

mə-ˈlig-nənt

as in malicious

having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it a malignant wish to lash out at everyone who was smarter, richer, or better-looking than he was

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of malignant While most are harmless, some have the potential to become malignant over time. —

Holly Burns, Time, 6 May 2026 These tumors can be benign or malignant. —

Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 28 Apr. 2026 Half of the mammary tumors found in dogs are benign, and of the malignant half, most can be treated successfully with surgery if caught early enough, the veterinary group notes. —

Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 28 Apr. 2026 That one is on Stan Bowman, as was the decision to stick with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard for the start of the 2025-26 season despite Skinner’s malignant inconsistency and Pickard’s career-backup resume. —

Sean Gentille, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for malignant

Recent Examples of Synonyms for malignant

Adjective

The core challenge of adapting systems of trust to the agentic economy is distinguishing legitimate from malicious automation without harming the user experience.

— Andrew Sever, Forbes.com, 28 May 2026
The addition was a prompt injection, a form of AI attack that exploits an LLM’s inability to distinguish between legitimate user prompts and those from unauthorized, potentially malicious third parties.

— Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 28 May 2026