malignus

Latin

Etymology

Formed as an antonym of benignus (“kind, generous”), from male (“badly”) +‎ -gnus (“-born”).

Pronunciation

• (Classical Latin) IPA^(key): [maˈlɪŋ.nʊs]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): [maˈliɲ.ɲus]

Adjective

malignus (feminine maligna, neuter malignum); first/second-declension adjective

1. wicked, malicious, stingy
2. spiteful
3. malignant, malign

Declension

First/second-declension adjective.

	singular				plural
	masculine	feminine	neuter		masculine	feminine	neuter
nominative	malignus	maligna	malignum		malignī	malignae	maligna
genitive	malignī	malignae	malignī		malignōrum	malignārum	malignōrum
dative	malignō	malignae	malignō		malignīs
accusative	malignum	malignam	malignum		malignōs	malignās	maligna
ablative	malignō	malignā	malignō		malignīs
vocative	maligne	maligna	malignum		malignī	malignae	maligna

Antonyms

• benignus

Derived terms

• malignitās

Descendants

• Asturian: maliñu, → malín, malinu (semi-learned)
• → Catalan: maligne
• → English: malign
• → French: malin
• → Galician: maligno
• → Italian: maligno
• → Occitan: maligne
• → Piedmontese: malegn, malign
• → Portuguese: maligno
• → Romanian: malign
• → Sicilian: malignu
• → Spanish: maligno
• → Welsh: malen

Further reading

• “malignus”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879), A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “malignus”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891), An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• "malignus", in Charles du Fresne du Cange, Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)
• “malignus”, in Gaffiot, Félix (1934), Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.