as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it
the novel grossly oversimplified the conflict as a struggle between relentlessly malevolent villains on one side and faultless saints on the other
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Recent Examples of malevolent
Like the song says, friends can like different things from one another, but pretty much everyone loves Sesame Street — well, everyone except David Zaslav, the malevolent, showbiz-hating chairman of Warner Bros. Discovery.
—
Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 30 Dec. 2024
The most vaunted had malevolent aims: the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC), a sprawling military R&D enterprise thought to employ as many as 20,000 people.
—Byrichard Stone, science.org, 23 Dec. 2024
The Dead Zone maintains key big-picture threads from the book and movie — the malevolent rising-star politician, the apocalyptic portent — while taking advantage of its format, succeeding as both a procedural and a long-term story.
—Chris Snellgrove, EW.com, 22 Dec. 2024
Imagine that kind of malevolent connection operating in the Senate.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, Orlando Sentinel, 20 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for malevolent 
Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 30 Dec. 2024
The most vaunted had malevolent aims: the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC), a sprawling military R&D enterprise thought to employ as many as 20,000 people.
—Byrichard Stone, science.org, 23 Dec. 2024
The Dead Zone maintains key big-picture threads from the book and movie — the malevolent rising-star politician, the apocalyptic portent — while taking advantage of its format, succeeding as both a procedural and a long-term story.
—Chris Snellgrove, EW.com, 22 Dec. 2024
Imagine that kind of malevolent connection operating in the Senate.
—Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, Orlando Sentinel, 20 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for malevolent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for malevolent
Adjective
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Ultimately, the debate over the ability of malicious hackers to trigger a continent-wide blackout is moot and a distraction from the issue that really matters.—
Dan Goodin,
Ars Technica,
23 Jan. 2025
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Android users can also keep Google Play Protect enabled to scan for malicious code—even on sideloaded apps.—
Kate Irwin,
PCMAG,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But Canadian model and actress Kat Pasion, whose credits include Altered Carbon, The Flash and Nancy Drew, appears in the ID series to help corroborate the vicious abuse and assaults that Ventura allegedly endured and chronicled in her landmark civil suit.—
Etan Vlessing,
The Hollywood Reporter,
23 Jan. 2025
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Combined with a vicious splitter, which is one of the best in the world right now, Sasaki has proved unstoppable at times.—
Jamie Barton,
CNN,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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And having more thoughtful conversations doesn’t preclude the need sometimes to confront those who are needlessly cruel or organizations that benefit from such exploitation.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
18 Jan. 2025
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In recent months, the Justice Department and the state filed thousands of pages of new records in the lawsuit, including reports and sworn statements from pediatricians, scholars and others who describe Florida’s policies as archaic and cruel.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Garvey’s legacy has been complicated, especially due to his sometimes hateful and violent rhetoric against Jews, white people, Catholics, and other groups.—
Brady Knox,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
19 Jan. 2025
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The settlement, announced by the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights, requires Rutgers to take a series of actions to combat discrimination on campus after 400 reports of hateful incidents on campus were filed between July 2023 and June 2024.—
Fox News Staff,
Fox News,
16 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near malevolent
Cite this Entry
“Malevolent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/malevolent. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.
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