mal-

¹ American  

1. a combining form meaning “bad,” “wrongful,” “ill,” occurring originally in loanwords from French (malapert ); on this model, used in the formation of other words (malfunction; malcontent ).

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Mal. ² American  

abbreviation

1. Bible. Malachi.

2. Malayan.

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Mal. ¹ British  

abbreviation

1. Bible Malachi

2. Malay(an)

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MAL ² British  

abbreviation

1. Malaysia (international car registration)

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mal- ³ British  

combining form

1. bad or badly; wrong or wrongly; imperfect or defective

   maladjusted

   malfunction

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Etymology

Origin of mal-

Middle English < Old French, representing mal adv. (< Latin male badly, ill) and adj. (< Latin malus bad)

Example Sentences

George Harrison offers spoken holiday wishes before introducing long-suffering road manager, Mal Evans, who offers his own greeting.

From Salon

Last week, NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon visited Constable Hibbert in hospital, praising him as a "positive young man".

From BBC

“For both officers, it will be a long road to recovery,” said Mal Lanyon, the New South Wales police commissioner.

From The Wall Street Journal

NSW Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon told a press conference there is "no confirmed link" between the alleged terrorists and the detained group, but that Bondi Beach was one of several locations the latter was intending to visit.

From BBC

Earlier on Wednesday, New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said they were waiting for medication to wear off before formally questioning Akram.

From BBC