malign

[ muh-lahyn ]

/ məˈlaɪn /

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verb (used with object)

to speak harmful untruths about; speak evil of; slander; defame: to malign an honorable man.

adjective

evil in effect; pernicious; baleful; injurious: The gloomy house had a malign influence upon her usually good mood.

having or showing an evil disposition; malevolent; malicious.

Nearby words

malic acid, malice, malice aforethought, malicious, malicious mischief, malign, malignancy, malignant, malignant anemia, malignant bubo, malignant ciliary epithelioma

Origin of malign

1275–1325; Middle English maligne < Middle French < Latin malignus. See mal-, benign

SYNONYMS FOR malign

1 libel, calumniate; disparage; revile, abuse, vilify.

2 baneful.

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ANTONYMS FOR malign

1 praise.

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Related forms

ma·lign·er, nounma·lign·ly, adverbun·ma·ligned, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for maligner

But I denounce him as a calumniator of my country; a maligner of this nation.
The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 9 (of 12)|Robert G. Ingersoll
It would be quite superfluous to follow this maligner in the details of this, and a subsequent attack in an agricultural journal.
Jethro Wood, Inventor of the Modern Plow.|Frank Gilbert
Slowly they turned their heads to look at the fence, upon the other side of which stood the maligner of their eyes.
Gentle Julia|Booth Tarkington
She had saved her maligner's life, but courage deserted her with the act.
Graustark|George Barr McCutcheon

She proves her innocence by going before the king and swearing that her maligner has stolen one of her golden slippers.
Filipino Popular Tales|Dean S. Fansler

British Dictionary definitions for maligner

malign

/ (məˈlaɪn) /

adjective

evil in influence, intention, or effect

verb

(tr) to slander or defame

Derived Forms

maligner, nounmalignly, adverb

Word Origin for malign

C14: via Old French from Latin malīgnus spiteful, from malus evil

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012