nefarious

adjective

ne·far·i·ous ni-ˈfer-ē-əs

: flagrantly wicked or impious : evil

nefariously adverb

Choose the Right Synonym for nefarious

vicious, villainous, iniquitous, nefarious, corrupt, degenerate mean highly reprehensible or offensive in character, nature, or conduct.

vicious may directly oppose virtuous in implying moral depravity, or may connote malignancy, cruelty, or destructive violence.

a vicious gangster

villainous applies to any evil, depraved, or vile conduct or characteristic.

a villainous assault

iniquitous implies absence of all signs of justice or fairness.

an iniquitous system of taxation

nefarious suggests flagrant breaching of time-honored laws and traditions of conduct.

the nefarious rackets of organized crime

corrupt stresses a loss of moral integrity or probity causing betrayal of principle or sworn obligations.

city hall was rife with corrupt politicians

degenerate suggests having sunk to an especially vicious or enervated condition.

a degenerate regime propped up by foreign powers

Examples of nefarious in a Sentence

Moreover, those starry-eyed states inclined to perceive international relations in moral terms frequently underestimate the nefarious machinations of their competitors on the world political stage. —

Richard Wolin, New Republic, 4 June 2001

… I always give the same response: Just because Frank posed for pictures with every leading capo, underboss and cement contractor of the day doesn't mean that he joined them in their nefarious underworld activities. Oh, occasionally he rode along on a hit or two, but that was just one of those social obligations … —

Lewis Grossberger, Time, 21 Dec. 1998

Three-tenths of a mile uphill from our mailbox on the road, that bend is so nefarious that neophytes often skidded into a snowbank or wound up fender-deep in mud there. —

Maxine Kumin, In Deep, 1987

a nefarious scheme to cheat people out of their money the chaste heroines and nefarious villains of old-time melodramas

Recent Examples on the Web

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Either the region had become addicted to sparklingly clean kitchens or a more nefarious pattern had been established. —

Ed Caesar, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024 He's supposed to take it easy but instead partners with a young Oregon cop (Tye Sheridan) to tackle a neo-Nazi group with nefarious plans and a charismatic leader (Nicholas Hoult). —

Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 1 Nov. 2024 These films represented a very traumatic event that had happened, and played a role in shaping viewers’ responses to it, not necessarily in a nefarious way, but in a psychological processing sort of way. —

Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 31 Oct. 2024 Claims of election fraud exploded in 2020 as former President Trump and his allies sought to portray their narrow election loss as something more nefarious. —

Ella Lee, The Hill, 31 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for nefarious