malice
Americannoun
-
desire to inflict injury, harm, or suffering on another, either because of a hostile impulse or out of deep-seated meanness.
the malice and spite of a lifelong enemy.
- Synonyms:
- rancor, bitterness, hatred, hate, venom, malevolence, enmity, animosity, spitefulness, spite, ill will
- Antonyms:
- goodwill, benevolence
-
Law. evil intent on the part of a person who commits a wrongful act injurious to others.
noun
-
the desire to do harm or mischief
-
evil intent
-
law the state of mind with which an act is committed and from which the intent to do wrong may be inferred See also malice aforethought
Synonym Usage
See grudge.
Etymology
Origin of malice
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin malitia; equivalent to mal- + -ice
Explanation
Malice is the intention to cause harm. If someone feels malice toward you, look out! They've got bad intentions. Just like the Spanish mal, this is a word for badness or evil. Malice isn't just any evil, though: it's evil done intentionally by someone seeking to do harm. People feel malice for people they hate. Malice is even stronger than spite. Out of all the emotions and thoughts you can have, malice is one of the most dangerous. Just about every villain in every movie and TV show is full of malice.
Vocabulary lists containing malice
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Take the Bad with the Good: Bene and Mal
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The Tragedy of Macbeth
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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.
Often described as monstrous, irredeemable from the crib and the personification of malice, Cathy is both Eve and serpent in Steinbeck’s heavy-handed biblical allegory.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026
Despite the vast trove of limited series available these days, over-the-top ‘80s-style melodramas like this, sagas laced with delectable malice, simply do not exist today. “
From Salon ● Jul. 19, 2026
Never attribute to malice what you can attribute to carelessness or incompetence.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 10, 2026
“If anything, the evidence shows that they believed in the truth of their reporting, and that they formed their opinions independently. Without evidence of actual malice Dershowitz’s defamation claim cannot go forward,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 29, 2026
It was hissing with malice, stabbing its head forward as it waddled heavily up the shore, and the beak snapped and clacked.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
