evil |ˈēvəl|
adjective
profoundly immoral and malevolent : his evil deeds | no man is so evil as to be beyond redemption.
• (of a force or spirit) embodying or associated with the forces of the devil : we have been driven out of the house by this evil spirit.
• harmful or tending to harm : the evil effects of high taxes.
• (of something seen or smelled) extremely unpleasant : a bathroom with an evil smell.
noun
profound immorality, wickedness, and depravity, esp. when regarded as a supernatural force : the world is stalked by relentless evil | good and evil in eternal opposition.
• a manifestation of this, esp. in people’s actions : the evil that took place last Thursday.
• something that is harmful or undesirable : sexism, racism, and all other unpleasant social evils.
PHRASES
the evil eye a gaze or stare superstitiously believed to cause material harm : he gave me the evil eye as I walked down the corridor.
the Evil One archaic the Devil.
put off the evil day (or hour) postpone something unpleasant for as long as possible.
speak evil of slander : it is a sin to speak evil of the king.
DERIVATIVES
evilly |ˈēvəl(l)ē| adverb
evilness noun
ORIGIN Old English yfel, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch euvel and German Übel.