baleful
adjective
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The bale of baleful comes from Old English bealu ("evil"), and the bane of the similar-looking baneful comes from Old English bana ("slayer" or "murderer"). Baleful and baneful are alike in meaning as well as appearance, and they are sometimes used in quite similar contexts—but they usually differ in emphasis. Baleful typically describes what threatens or portends evil (e.g., "a baleful look," "baleful predictions"). Baneful applies typically to what causes evil or destruction (e.g., "a baneful secret," "the baneful bite of the serpent"). Both words are used to modify terms like influence, effect, and result, and in such uses there is little that distinguishes them.
Synonyms
- dire
- direful
- doomy
- foreboding
- ill
- ill-boding
- inauspicious
- menacing
- minatory
- ominous
- portentous
- sinister
- threatening
Example Sentences
Charles Isherwood, WSJ, 11 July 2022 But looking back over five decades, Mr. Barone thinks Watergate was a historical watershed and had a baleful influence on politics and journalism that still bedevils us today. Tunku Varadarajan, WSJ, 10 June 2022 Most people know Muna for their hook-laden, vibe-inducing electro-pop singles — so when the trio dropped a baleful country song earlier this week, fans were certainly shocked. Stephen Daw, Billboard, 29 Apr. 2022 With his invasion of Ukraine floundering and his economy teetering, Putin doubled down Wednesday — turning his baleful glare on Russians who are against the invasion or who sympathize with the West. NBC News, 17 Mar. 2022 Saint Russia would stand against this baleful homogenization. New York Times, 26 Mar. 2022 This baleful development has led to a flourishing cybersecurity industry. Larry Light, Fortune, 11 Mar. 2022 Durham’s probe is a righteous effort to get to the bottom of a matter that deranged American politics for two solid years, though it has been derided or ignored by the corporate press, with baleful consequences. Rich Lowry, National Review, 15 Feb. 2022 The minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, even wrote to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei complaining of the show’s baleful influence. Omid Khazani And Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times, 18 Nov. 2021 See More Word History
Middle English balefull "(of humans or animals) bent upon mischief or destruction, malevolent, (of things) pernicious," also "wretched, miserable," going back to Old English bealluful "full of evil, sinful," from bealu bale entry 1 + -ful -ful entry 1
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
balefulness
noun
Synonyms & Similar Words
- iniquitousness
- depravedness
- vileness
- diabolism
- badness
- bad
- wickedness
- heinousness
- sinfulness
- evil
- evilness
- devilishness
- satanism
- wrong
- atrocity
- darkness
- enormity
- atrociousness
- villainy
- fiendishness
- immorality
- evildoing
- ill
- iniquity
- scurrilousness
- pervertedness
- malefaction
- sin
- decay
- squalor
- canker
- cancer
- devilry
- rot
- scurrility
- corruption
- degeneracy
- deviltry
- perversion
- depravity
- abomination
- indecency
- debauchery
- anathema
- taboo
- tabu
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- right
- virtue
- morality
- good
- integrity
- goodness
- honesty
- righteousness
- decency
- goodness
- probity
- rectitude
- uprightness
- virtuousness