ne·far·i·ous

[ni-fair-ee-uhs]
adjective
extremely wicked or villainous; iniquitous: a nefarious plot.
Origin:
1595–1605; < Latin nefārius wicked, vile, equivalent to nefās offense against divine or moral law (ne- negative prefix + fās law, right) + -ius -ious, with intervocalic s > r

Related forms
ne·far·i·ous·ly, adverb
ne·far·i·ous·ness, noun
un·ne·far·i·ous, adjective
un·ne·far·i·ous·ly, adverb
un·ne·far·i·ous·ness, noun

Synonyms
flagitious, heinous, infamous; vile, atrocious, execrable.

Antonyms
good, honest.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
nefarious (nɪˈfɛərɪəs) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—adj
evil; wicked; sinful
 
[C17: from Latin nefārius, from nefās unlawful deed, from nē not + fās divine law]
 
ne'fariously
 
—adv
 
ne'fariousness
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

nefarious
1604, from L. nefarius "wicked, abominable," from nefas "crime, wrong, impiety," from ne- "not" (see un-) + fas "right, lawful, divinely spoken," related to fari "to speak" (see fame).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Example sentences
Even this article seems to imply something nefarious and evil about his money.
To this day, Walton does not believe that anything nefarious was going on.
In general, scholars do not think of impression management as an intentionally
  deceptive or nefarious practice.
Eventually he and Nina join forces to uncover some nefarious secrets.
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