mal-

English

Etymology

From Old French mal- from the Latin adverb male, from malus.

Prefix

mal-

1. bad, badly

   Synonym: mis-

   1. evil

      malism, malinfluence

   2. unhealthy, harmful

      maleffect

   3. unpleasant

      malodor

   4. incorrect

      Synonyms: para-, dis-, dys-, mis-

      maldifferentiation

   5. incomplete, unfinished

      maldescent

   6. poorly, deficiently

      Synonyms: under-, hypo-, dys-

      malfed, malnourished, malcirculation

2. unintentional, mistaken, accidental

   Synonym: mis-

   malcommunication

3. not

   Synonyms: a-, an-, dys-, in-, non-, un-

   maladherence, malcontent

Derived terms

Anagrams

• ALM, AML, LAM, Lam, Lam., M.L.A., MLA, alm, lam

Catalan

Etymology

From mal.

Prefix

mal-

1. poorly, badly

Derived terms

Further reading

• “mal-”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2024

Esperanto

Etymology

Borrowed from French mal- in its secondary sense of denoting the opposite.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mal/

• Audio

  (file)

Prefix

mal-

1. denotes opposites

   ‎mal- + ‎alta (“high”) → ‎malalta (“low”)

   ‎mal- + ‎ami (“to love”) → ‎malami (“to hate”)

   ‎mal- + ‎dekstra (“right”) → ‎maldekstra (“left”)

Usage notes

• Speakers of languages where words similar to mal- have meanings related to badness or evil should remember that mal- indicates solely the antonym, with no pejorative value. Affixes with pejorative connotations include mis- (“wrongly, incorrectly, poorly”), fi- (“shameful”), and -aĉ- (“inferior in quality, contemptible”).
• Despite the availability of mal-, many words denoting opposites are available; for example malgranda and eta (“small”), or malgaja and trista (“sad”). Some of these are poetic or rare, but others have passed into more or less common use. Mal- may and often is still used to produce the opposite, though in certain cases it might have a slightly different connotation; e.g. malpaco (“turmoil, strife”) vs. milito (“war”).
• When it is necessary to distinguish between the contrary of a sense and the absence of it, the latter may be indicated with ne- (“not”) or sen- (“without”). For example, malamiko (“enemy”) contrasts with neamiko "non-friend" (e.g. a stranger or acquaintance).

Derived terms

• mala (“opposite”, adjective)
• malo (“opposite”, noun)
• male (“on the contrary”)

See also

• ne-, sen-, kontraŭ-

French

Etymology

Inherited from Middle French mal-, from Old French mal-, from mal (“bad; badly”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mal/

• Audio

  (file)

Prefix

mal-

1. badly; wrongly

   ‎mal- + ‎faisant → ‎malfaisant (“harmful”)

2. denotes the opposite of the unprefixed form

Derived terms

Italian

Etymology

From Latin male (“badly”).

Prefix

mal-

1. bad; badly

Derived terms

Maltese

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mal/

Preposition

mal-

1. definite form of ma’ used before vowels or qamri consonants.

   mal-mara ― with the woman

   mal-idea ― with the idea

Old French

Alternative forms

• mau-

Etymology

From Latin male (“badly”).

Prefix

mal-

1. bad; badly

Synonyms

• mes-

Derived terms

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin male (“badly”).

Prefix

mal-

1. bad; badly
2. poorly
3. barely, hardly

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin male (“badly”).

Prefix

mal-

1. bad; badly

Derived terms