- maleficence
- noun Etymology: Italian maleficenza, from Latin maleficentia, from maleficus Date: 1598 1. a. the act of committing harm or evil b. a harmful or evil act 2. the quality or state of being maleficent
New Collegiate Dictionary. 2001.
maleficence
Look at other dictionaries:
maleficence — (n.) 1590s, from M.Fr. maleficence or directly from L. maleficentia evildoing, mischievousness, injury, from maleficus wicked (see MALEFIC (Cf. malefic)). Now largely displaced by MALFEASANCE (Cf. malfeasance) … Etymology dictionary
Maleficence — Ma*lef i*cence, n. [L. maleficentia. Cf. {Malfeasance}.] Evil doing, esp. to others. [1913 Webster] … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
maleficence — index vice Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
maleficence — /meuh lef euh seuhns/, n. 1. the doing of evil or harm: the maleficence of thieves. 2. the quality or state of being maleficent or harmful. [1590 1600; < L maleficentia. See MALEFIC, ENCE] * * * … Universalium
maleficence — noun harmfulness or mischief … Wiktionary
maleficence — , malfeasance The first means a propensity to cause hurt or harm. The second is a legal term describing wrongdoing … Bryson’s dictionary for writers and editors
maleficence — mÉ™ lefɪsns n. act of doing evil; harmfulness … English contemporary dictionary
maleficence — ma·lef·i·cence … English syllables
maleficence — /məˈlɛfəsəns/ (say muh lefuhsuhns) noun 1. the doing of evil or harm. 2. maleficent or harmful character. {Latin maleficientia} …
maleficence — noun 1. doing or causing evil • Ant: ↑beneficence • Derivationally related forms: ↑maleficent • Hypernyms: ↑malevolence, ↑malignity 2. the quality or nature of being harmful or evil … Useful english dictionary
