Words on the Vine: Lesson 4
Word
Roots
mal = bad
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• mal- (Latin: bad, badly, harsh, wrong; ill; evil;
abnormal, defective; used primarily as a
prefix).
mal → bad, evil
• The Latin root word mal means “bad” or
“evil.” This root is the word origin of many
English vocabulary words, including
malformed, maltreat, and malice. You can
recall that mal means “bad” through
malfunction, or a “badly” working part, and
that it means “evil” through malice, or
intentional “evil” done to another.
malevolent, adj. /məˈlevələnt/
• having bad feelings toward someone or
something; spite, hatred
• wishing harm to others; malicious
There is the risk that
genetic selection may
be used in an
unscrupulous and
potentially malevolent
way. Failure made him
malevolent toward
those who were
successful."
malevolent, adj. /məˈlevələnt/
• having bad feelings toward someone or
something; spite, hatred
• wishing harm to others; malicious
malapropism, n. \ˈma-lə-ˌprä-ˌpi-zəm\
• a word used the wrong way, in place of a word
with a similar sound; usually resulting in a
nonsensical or humorous result
Malapropisms are often
the subject of media
attention, especially when
made by politicians or
other prominent
individuals.
Origin
• Although William Shakespeare had used the device for comic effect,
the term derives from Richard Brinsley Sheridan’s character Mrs.
Malaprop (noted for her misuse of words) in his play The Rivals
(1775). Her name is taken from the term malapropos (French:
“inappropriate”). Thinking of the geography of contiguous
countries, she spoke of the “geometry” of “contagious countries,”
and hoped that her daughter might “reprehend” the true meaning
of what she is
• Former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley referred to a tandem bicycle
as a "tantrum bicycle" and made mention of "Alcoholics
Unanimous" (Alcoholics Anonymous).
• Oliver Hardy is suffering a nervous "shakedown" (rather than
"breakdown"), and calls the Exalted Ruler of their group the
"exhausted ruler"
• “Illiterate him quite from your memory" (instead of 'obliterate')',
and "she's as headstrong as an allegory" (instead of alligator).
• "Texas has a lot of electrical votes.” (rather than "electoral votes“)
malicious, adj. /məˈliSHəs/
• desiring harm to someone or something else;
prone to do ‘evil’
A lawyer for Miami Dolphins
player Jonathan Martin, who
was allegedly bullied by
teammate Richie Incognito, says
his client endured a "malicious
physical attack" in addition to
harassment from unnamed
teammates that went far
beyond the traditional locker
room hazing.
malodorous, adj. /malˈōdərəs/
• bad-smelling
The cellar will need to
be cleared of several
malodorous,
maggot-infested piles
of garbage.
malady, n. \ˈma-lə-dē\
• a bad health condition; a disease
Descriptions of a malady from the late fifteenth and
early sixteenth centuries relate the horror of its effects:
the terrible sores and swellings, often extending into
the mouth and throat, and leaving the body covered
with scabs that turned from red to black; severe fever;
pain in the bones so intense that patients "screamed
day and night without respite, envying the dead
themselves."
malaria, n. \mə-ˈler-ē-ə\
• a human disease caused by sporozoan
parasites originally thought to be caused by
‘bad’ air, actually spread by mosquitoes
The world’s first malaria
vaccine could be available
within the next 18 months,
marking a major advance in
efforts to eradicate a disease
that kills more than half a
million people, many of them
children, every year.
malediction, n. \ˌma-lə-ˈdik-shən\
• bad speech; a curse
The two women began
casting false charges and
heaping maledictions
upon one another.
malefactor, n. /ˈma-lə-ˌfak-tər/
• one who does wrong or ‘evil’ things; villain
I visited the condemned malefactors in Newgate,
and was locked in by the turnkey, not with them, but
in the yard. However, I stood upon a bench, and they
climbed up to the windows of their cells; so that all
could hear my exhortation and prayer. .
John Wesley was an 18th century Anglican evangelist.
malignant, adj. /mə-ˈlig-nənt/
• bad or harmful, producing death
• of a “bad” tumor or of someone disposed to
do “evil”
--a highly
malignant form
of cancer
--a powerful
and malignant
influence
malpractice, n. \ˌmal-ˈprak-təs\
• performing one’s duty in a bad or wrong way
Doctors need to
have malpractice
insurance to
protect
themselves
against lawsuits.
More Terms
• malfunction: when something is functioning
‘badly’
• malformed: ‘badly’ shaped
• malnutrition: a condition of ‘bad’ nutrition
• dismal: etymologically of an ‘evil’ day
• maleficent: a tendency to do ‘evil’ deeds