What Is the Difference Between vicious, villainous, and nefarious?
Nefarious comes from the Latin adjective nefarius and the Latin noun nefas, which means "crime." Nefas is a combination of ne- ("not") and fas, meaning "right" or "divine law."
vicious may directly oppose virtuous in implying moral depravity, or may connote malignancy, cruelty, or destructive violence.
a vicious gangster
villainous applies to any evil, depraved, or vile conduct or characteristic.
a villainous assault
iniquitous implies absence of all signs of justice or fairness.
an iniquitous system of taxation
nefarious suggests flagrant breaching of time-honored laws and traditions of conduct.
the nefarious rackets of organized crime
corrupt stresses a loss of moral integrity or probity causing betrayal of principle or sworn obligations.
city hall was rife with corrupt politicians
degenerate suggests having sunk to an especially vicious or enervated condition.
a degenerate regime propped up by foreign powers
Examples of nefarious in a Sentence
Moreover, those starry-eyed states inclined to perceive international relations in moral terms frequently underestimate the nefarious machinations of their competitors on the world political stage.—Richard Wolin, New Republic, 4 June 2001… I always give the same response: Just because Frank posed for pictures with every leading capo, underboss and cement contractor of the day doesn't mean that he joined them in their nefarious underworld activities. Oh, occasionally he rode along on a hit or two, but that was just one of those social obligations …—Lewis Grossberger, Time, 21 Dec. 1998Three-tenths of a mile uphill from our mailbox on the road, that bend is so nefarious that neophytes often skidded into a snowbank or wound up fender-deep in mud there.—Maxine Kumin, In Deep, 1987
a nefarious scheme to cheat people out of their money
the chaste heroines and nefarious villains of old-time melodramas
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New in select theaters on streaming on premium video on demand, Off the Grid stars Duhamel as Guy, a brilliant scientist hiding out in the wild from a megalomaniac employer who wants to weaponize his mini cold fusion reactor for nefarious purposes.—Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025 Rather than flagging emojis as stand-alone nefarious code, experts agree that the most important thing to do is turn your attention to your teen rather than their phone.—Liz Regalia, Parents, 30 June 2025 Despite the undeniable nature of Iran being a nefarious actor in the region, there was no imminent threat, no U.N. Security Council authorization, and no widespread international consensus to engage in such a military strike.—H.a. Hellyer, Time, 30 June 2025 Unfortunately, false leads and nefarious characters initially prevent him from finding any real evidence.—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 27 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for nefarious
Word History
Etymology
Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right, divine law; perhaps akin to Greek themis law, tithenai to place — more at do
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