malediction
Americannoun
-
a curse; imprecation.
- Synonyms:
- execration, damning
- Antonyms:
- benediction
-
the utterance of a curse.
noun
-
the utterance of a curse against someone or something
-
slanderous accusation or comment
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of malediction
1400–50; late Middle English malediccion < Latin maledictiōn- (stem of maledictiō ) slander ( Late Latin: curse). See male-, diction
Explanation
“Darn you!” “Go bury your head in the sand.” “You ugly nincompoop!” Each of those nasty curses is a malediction (and, I’m sure, nothing you would ever say to another human being). A malediction is a curse. Not like the kind a witch puts on someone, but close. More like what the schoolyard bully says to hurt someone’s feelings. On purpose. Malediction has male in it, but it’s not a slur against men or boys. Mal comes from the Latin for "evil" and "diction," and as you may remember, has to do with what we say. So a malediction is an evil statement directed at someone else. Pretty nasty, if you ask me.
Vocabulary lists containing malediction
You Can Say That Again: Dic and Dict
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King Lear
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Elie Wiesel (1928-2016) Tribute List
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Despite this Sisyphean malediction, with each call for new proposals, the community still tries to push its boulder back to the mountaintop.
From Scientific American • Jun. 2, 2021
A salvor who declines to donate their winnings to the poor no longer risks “the curse and malediction of our mother the holy church,” as the law was written in the 1100s.
From Washington Post • May 19, 2020
But her writing, once you acclimate to its gargoyle extravagance, has the power of malediction.
From New York Times • Mar. 11, 2019
But the malediction, it turned out, was mine, and it was retrospective.
From Slate • Jan. 30, 2019
She was pointing at Ron in dire accusation: It was like a malediction, and Harry could not blame Ron for retreating several steps.
From "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" by J.K. Rowling
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
