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mal-

1 American  

  1. a combining form meaning “bad,” “wrongful,” “ill,” occurring originally in loanwords from French (malapert ); on this model, used in the formation of other words (malfunction; malcontent ).

Mal. 2 American  

abbreviation

  1. Bible. Malachi.

  2. Malayan.

Mal. 1 British  

abbreviation

  1. Bible Malachi

  2. Malay(an)

"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
MAL 2 British  

abbreviation

  1. Malaysia (international car registration)

"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
mal- 3 British  

combining form

  1. bad or badly; wrong or wrongly; imperfect or defective

    maladjusted

    malfunction
"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

Etymology

Origin of mal-

Middle English < Old French, representing mal adv. (< Latin male badly, ill) and adj. (< Latin malus bad)

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Others might recall her smokey vocals in the song “Mal Hombre,” as featured in Guillermo del Toro’s “Cabinet of Curiosities” — or in the final season of Netflix’s “Orange is the New Black” which featured her heart-wrenching cover of the traditional Mexican huapango “Cucurrucucú Paloma.”

From Los Angeles Times

New South Wales Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon said protesters came out onto the street and began to march on police, not once but twice.

From The Wall Street Journal

Mal had returned home from her journey, flying back from the forest with arms outstretched and coat flapping, buffeted by the wind.

From Literature

Mal Arvorian could fly only when the wind blew.

From Literature

Until, that fine day, they settled on Mal.

From Literature

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.