malaise

American  

[ma-leyz, -muh-, ma-lez] / mæˈleɪz, -mə-, maˈlɛz /

noun

1. a condition of general bodily weakness or discomfort, often marking the onset of a disease.

2. a vague or unfocused feeling of mental uneasiness, lethargy, or discomfort.

---

malaise British  

/ mæˈleɪz /

noun

1. a feeling of unease or depression

2. a mild sickness, not symptomatic of any disease or ailment

3. a complex of problems affecting a country, economy, etc

   Bulgaria's economic malaise

---

Etymology

Origin of malaise

First recorded in 1760–70; from French, Old French, equivalent to mal- + ease

Example Sentences

Can Europe seize the moment and actually get a grip with some of the deep-seated problems that are behind the economic malaise?

From The Wall Street Journal

A study published in January in the journal Economics Letters links consumer malaise in large part to the high cost of housing — which the Consumer Price Index undercounts.

From MarketWatch

Despite a Goldilocks economic backdrop, stocks are not breaking out of their malaise.

From Barron's

That same year, another psychological explanation for our lingering malaise and low energy, surge capacity depletion, circulated widely.

From Salon

Picking through the debris of the recent software stock slump, bitcoin’s regular winter meltdown, the dollar’s ongoing malaise and the memification of precious metals reveals an interesting, although perhaps not surprising, discovery.

From Barron's

Related Words

• angst
• anxiety
• despair
• discomfort
• disquiet
• doldrums
• illness
• pain
• unease
• uneasiness
• weakness