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baleful

 - 3 dictionary results

bale⋅ful

  [beyl-fuhl]
Use baleful in a Sentence
–adjective
1. full of menacing or malign influences; pernicious.
2. Obsolete. wretched; miserable.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME; OE bealofull. See bale 2 , -ful

Related forms:
bale⋅ful⋅ly, adverb
bale⋅ful⋅ness, noun

Synonyms:
1. harmful, malign, injurious, detrimental; evil, wicked; deadly.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To baleful
bale·ful   (bāl'fəl)   
adj.  

  1. Portending evil; ominous. See Synonyms at sinister.

  2. Harmful or malignant in intent or effect.

bale'ful·ly adv., bale'ful·ness n.
Usage Note: Baleful and baneful overlap in meaning, but baleful usually applies to something that is menacing or foreshadows evil: a baleful look. Baneful most often describes that which is actually harmful or destructive: baneful effects of their foreign policy.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

baleful 
O.E. bealu-full, from bealu "evil, malice, misery," from P.Gmc. *balwom (cf. O.Fris. balu, O.H.G. balo, O.N. bol), from PIE base *bheleu- "to beat." In poetic use only during Anglo-Saxon times and long extinct, but revived by modern romantic poets.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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