eviler or eviller; evilest or evillest
1
2
a
archaic
: inferior
b
: causing discomfort or repulsion : offensive
an evil odor
c
: disagreeable
woke late and in an evil temper
3
a
: causing harm : pernicious
the evil institution of slavery
b
: marked by misfortune : unlucky
1
a
: the fact of suffering, misfortune, and wrongdoing
b
: a cosmic evil force
2
: something that brings sorrow, distress, or calamity
archaic
: in an evil manner
Synonyms
Examples of evil in a Sentence
Adjective
She drank an evil potion.
The city has fallen on evil days.
It was an evil omen.
Noun
the battle of good versus evil
our free will allows us to choose between good and evil
Recent Examples on the Web
James Grebey, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2023
Like the movie itself, the performance doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel in terms of how a good man goes evil.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2023
Venus, by contrast, can be considered Earth’s evil twin—almost identical in size and mass, albeit with thick sulfuric acid clouds and a broiling pressure-cooker climate with surface temperatures hot enough to melt lead.
—Leonard David, Scientific American, 14 Nov. 2023
Branch’s now-significant other Poppy (Anna Kendrick) becomes aware of his celebrity past when his brother Floyd (Troye Sivan) is kidnapped by a pair of evil pop stars, Velvet (Amy Schumer) and Veneer (Andrew Rannells), who want to exploit his talents.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Nov. 2023
Because while Google spent most of its first day attempting to explain complicated ins and outs of business, Epic was able to paint a black-and-white picture of good and evil with itself as the clear underdog.
—Sean Hollister, The Verge, 7 Nov. 2023
In the wake of the first season’s reveal that the titular hero’s dad was an evil fascist P.O.S., Invincible must find a way to continue his superheroics while also facing new, skull-breaking, dimension-hopping, shape-shifting(?) villains.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2023
Historically, October 31st has been about honoring death, welcoming the harvest, and warding off evil spirits.
—Mira Ptacin, Vogue, 3 Nov. 2023
Batman The dads took a villainous turn as Gotham bad boys — the Riddler and the Joker in 2014 — but Batman (Gideon) and Batgirl (Harper) were there to thwart any evil shenanigans.
—Lydia Price, Peoplemag, 1 Nov. 2023
Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 14 Nov. 2023
During Diwali, originally a harvest festival, lamps are lit to celebrate the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.
—Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 13 Nov. 2023
Their film tries to move beyond the haunting existentialism of good and evil to consider less glamorous, but still urgent themes of interplanetary dependence and sisterhood.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Nov. 2023
The Diwali party capped off a weekend of other Diwali galas in the city, as the festival is a five-day-long symbolic celebration of the spiritual victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.
—Mario Abad, Vogue, 6 Nov. 2023
That, of course, was silly and petty, probably even a little bit evil.
—Bill Dwyre, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2023
Von Rumpel’s over-the-top persona feels tired next to the more casual, chilling evil of most of the other Nazi characters.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 2 Nov. 2023
The stakes and the spectacles are as grand as the evil is chillingly banal.
—The New Yorker, 27 Oct. 2023
Rogers was ably aided on that front by Martínez Yépez, who emerged quietly from stage left and embodied the voice of evil with appropriately chilling intensity.
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 6 Nov. 2023
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Adjective
Incredible performances from the whole cast (especially a deliciously evil Viola Davis and a quick-witted Jason Schwartzman) are the cherry on top of this stellar new entry in the Hunger Games world.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 17 Nov. 2023
Like the movie itself, the performance doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel in terms of how a good man goes evil.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 16 Nov. 2023
Venus, by contrast, can be considered Earth’s evil twin—almost identical in size and mass, albeit with thick sulfuric acid clouds and a broiling pressure-cooker climate with surface temperatures hot enough to melt lead.
—Leonard David, Scientific American, 14 Nov. 2023
Branch’s now-significant other Poppy (Anna Kendrick) becomes aware of his celebrity past when his brother Floyd (Troye Sivan) is kidnapped by a pair of evil pop stars, Velvet (Amy Schumer) and Veneer (Andrew Rannells), who want to exploit his talents.
—Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Nov. 2023
Because while Google spent most of its first day attempting to explain complicated ins and outs of business, Epic was able to paint a black-and-white picture of good and evil with itself as the clear underdog.
—Sean Hollister, The Verge, 7 Nov. 2023
In the wake of the first season’s reveal that the titular hero’s dad was an evil fascist P.O.S., Invincible must find a way to continue his superheroics while also facing new, skull-breaking, dimension-hopping, shape-shifting(?) villains.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2023
Historically, October 31st has been about honoring death, welcoming the harvest, and warding off evil spirits.
—Mira Ptacin, Vogue, 3 Nov. 2023
Batman The dads took a villainous turn as Gotham bad boys — the Riddler and the Joker in 2014 — but Batman (Gideon) and Batgirl (Harper) were there to thwart any evil shenanigans.
—Lydia Price, Peoplemag, 1 Nov. 2023
Noun
Ukraine’s advocates in both parties have struggled to link the crises in Ukraine and Israel as part of a larger, existential struggle of good versus evil, democracies versus autocracies, that must be confronted together.
—Jacob Bogage, Washington Post, 14 Nov. 2023
During Diwali, originally a harvest festival, lamps are lit to celebrate the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.
—Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 13 Nov. 2023
Their film tries to move beyond the haunting existentialism of good and evil to consider less glamorous, but still urgent themes of interplanetary dependence and sisterhood.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Nov. 2023
The Diwali party capped off a weekend of other Diwali galas in the city, as the festival is a five-day-long symbolic celebration of the spiritual victory of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.
—Mario Abad, Vogue, 6 Nov. 2023
That, of course, was silly and petty, probably even a little bit evil.
—Bill Dwyre, Los Angeles Times, 5 Nov. 2023
Von Rumpel’s over-the-top persona feels tired next to the more casual, chilling evil of most of the other Nazi characters.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 2 Nov. 2023
The stakes and the spectacles are as grand as the evil is chillingly banal.
—The New Yorker, 27 Oct. 2023
Rogers was ably aided on that front by Martínez Yépez, who emerged quietly from stage left and embodied the voice of evil with appropriately chilling intensity.
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 6 Nov. 2023
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'evil.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Adjective
Middle English, from Old English yfel; akin to Old High German ubil evil
First Known Use
Adjective
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Adverb
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of evil was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing evil
Dictionary Entries Near evil
Cite this Entry
“Evil.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/evil. Accessed 28 Nov. 2023.
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Kids Definition
evil
2 of 2 noun1
: something that brings sorrow, trouble, or destruction
2
: the fact of suffering or wrongdoing
More from Merriam-Webster on evil
Nglish: Translation of evil for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of evil for Arabic Speakers
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