malignant
disposed to cause harm, suffering, or distress deliberately; feeling or showing ill will or hatred.
very dangerous or harmful in influence or effect.
Pathology.
tending to produce death, as bubonic plague.
(of a tumor) characterized by uncontrolled growth; cancerous, invasive, or metastatic.
Origin of malignant
1Other words for malignant
Opposites for malignant
Other words from malignant
- ma·lig·nant·ly, adverb
- non·ma·lig·nant, adjective
- non·ma·lig·nant·ly, adverb
- sem·i·ma·lig·nant, adjective
- sem·i·ma·lig·nant·ly, adverb
- un·ma·lig·nant, adjective
- un·ma·lig·nant·ly, adverb
Words Nearby malignant
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use malignant in a sentence
They are three-dimensional assemblages of malignant growths used to study cancer behavior and vulnerability to chemotherapy and the so-called “targeted drugs”—the next generation therapies.
They can reveal how normal tissues turn malignant and where the cellular machinery goes off-track to allow that to happen.
Without any synthetic chemicals introduced, the strategy sidesteps any opportunity for malignant fungi to develop resistances, she says.
Nanoscale nutrients can protect plants from fungal diseases | Shi En Kim | May 3, 2021 | Science NewsThe Nigerian neurotech entrepreneur who speaks five languages has developed a modem-sized device that can sniff out explosives in public spaces and diseases, including malignant tumors in humans.
Castillo’s attempt to restructure the agency led to pushback from the rank and file, ranging from malignant noncompliance to blatant racism.
The DHS secretary could chart a new path on immigration. Will he? | Adam Goodman | February 2, 2021 | Washington Post
And if trickle-down could start on a dinner napkin, surely the process of reversing its malignant effects can start with a book.
Real Vs. Republican Populism: How to Win the War on Inequality | Michael Tomasky | April 16, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTImmigration showcases the other malignant GOP tumor: The rage of the base.
Doctors have called these changes, pre-cancer or pre-malignant.
Democracy works this way: it has non-violent means of purging malignant elements.
Might either of the two bring up the malignant problems experienced by the Eurozone?
But in a malignant war there is injustice of ignobler kind at once to God and man, which must be stemmed for both their sakes.
Pearls of Thought | Maturin M. BallouHere the proud state that claimed him as her own offspring, met him with the injustice of a malignant step-dame.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4 | Jane PorterMrs. Haight regarded the radiant young hostess with a malignant stare, prudently veiled by drooping lids.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonThey were framed with malignant ingenuity, so as to leave no chance of escape save in open apostasy.
The Catacombs of Rome | William Henry WithrowHarry gave a disturbed, wondering look round, on seeing Edward's air of malignant satisfaction.
The Daisy Chain | Charlotte Yonge
British Dictionary definitions for malignant
/ (məˈlɪɡnənt) /
having or showing desire to harm others
tending to cause great harm; injurious
pathol (of a tumour) uncontrollable or resistant to therapy; rapidly spreading
history (in the English Civil War) a Parliamentarian term for a royalist (def. 1)
Origin of malignant
1Derived forms of malignant
- malignantly, adverb
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
Scientific definitions for malignant
[ mə-lĭg′nənt ]
Tending to have a destructive clinical course, as a malignant illness.
Relating to cancer cells that are invasive and tend to metastasize. Malignant tumor cells are histologically more primitive than normal tissue. Compare benign.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for malignant
A descriptive term for things or conditions that threaten life or well-being. Malignant is the opposite of benign.
Notes for malignant
Notes for malignant
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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