malignant

American  

[muh-lig-nuhnt] / məˈlɪg nənt /

adjective

1. disposed to cause harm, suffering, or distress deliberately; feeling or showing ill will or hatred.

   Synonyms:

   malevolent , spiteful

   Antonyms:

   benign

2. very dangerous or harmful in influence or effect.

   Synonyms:

   pernicious , hurtful , perilous

   Antonyms:

   benign

3. Pathology.

   1. tending to produce death, as bubonic plague.

   2. (of a tumor) characterized by uncontrolled growth; cancerous, invasive, or metastatic.

   Antonyms:

   benign

---

malignant British  

/ məˈlɪɡnənt /

adjective

1. having or showing desire to harm others

2. tending to cause great harm; injurious

3. pathol (of a tumour) uncontrollable or resistant to therapy; rapidly spreading

---

noun

1. history (in the English Civil War) a Parliamentarian term for a royalist

malignant Scientific  

/ mə-lĭg′nənt /

1. Tending to have a destructive clinical course, as a malignant illness.

2. Relating to cancer cells that are invasive and tend to metastasize. Malignant tumor cells are histologically more primitive than normal tissue.

3. Compare benign

---

malignant Cultural  

1. A descriptive term for things or conditions that threaten life or well-being. Malignant is the opposite of benign.

---

Usage

What’s the difference between malignant and benign? In a medical context, the word malignant is used to describe harmful masses or tumors that are cancerous and that grow and spread disease. The word benign is the opposite—it’s used to describe masses or tumors that are not cancerous (those that do not spread disease to other parts of the body).Both words are sometimes also used in general ways. Malignant can mean harmful or intended or intending to cause harm, while benign can mean kind, favorable, or gracious.The best clue to help remember their meanings is the prefix mal-, which means “bad” and shows up in a lot of other negative words, such as malfunction, malpractice, malicious, and maleficent.Here’s an example of malignant and benign used correctly in the same sentence.Example: She was afraid the lump was a malignant tumor, but it turned out to be a benign cyst—totally harmless.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between malignant and benign.

Discover More

The term is often used in a general way to denote something that is both destructive and fast growing: “The malignant growth of the suburbs is destroying the landscape.”

The term malignant is used in describing cancerous tumors (see cancer) because such growths are a threat to the health of the individual.

Other Word Forms

• malignantly adverb
• nonmalignant adjective
• nonmalignantly adverb
• semimalignant adjective
• semimalignantly adverb
• unmalignant adjective
• unmalignantly adverb

Etymology

Origin of malignant

First recorded in 1535–45; from Late Latin malignant-, stem of malignāns, present participle of malignāre “to act maliciously”; malign, -ant

Example Sentences

Glioblastoma develops from astrocytes, a type of brain cell, and is the most common malignant brain tumor, affecting about three in every 100,000 people in the U.S.

From Science Daily

This combination successfully triggered necroptosis in malignant B cells and produced a powerful immune response that completely eliminated leukemia in a preclinical model.

From Science Daily

"Bone marrow or stem cell transplants are most commonly used in blood cancers, in which the bone marrow is full of malignant cells and patients have no other options," said Czechowicz.

From Science Daily

It also highlights the value of naturally removing compromised stem cells through "senolysis," a biological process that helps prevent cancer by sacrificing cells that could otherwise become malignant.

From Science Daily

Many malignant tumors are described as immune-suppressive or "immune cold" because the body's defenses fail to recognize them as threats.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• cancerous
• deadly
• destructive
• fatal
• lethal
• mortal