evil
Usage
What are other ways to say evil?
Evil applies to that which violates or leads to the violation of moral law: evil practices. Ill now appears mainly in certain fixed expressions, with a milder implication than that in evil: ill will; ill-natured. Wicked implies willful and determined doing of what is very wrong: a wicked plan. Bad is the broadest and simplest term: a bad man; bad habits.
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.
See Examples For:
Nasty villains with evil plans to make us miserable.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
“Event Horizon” demonstrates a major theme in Neill’s most gruesome creature feature performances: the slow, onscreen transition from good to evil.
From Salon ● Jul. 17, 2026
Andor, a prequel to the standalone Star Wars film Rogue One, tells the story of Cassian Andor and his fight against the evil empire.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
We agree about the evil that demanded a constitutional response.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
He must have some evil plan or he wouldn’t have sat down.
From "Invisible Inkling" by Emily Jenkins
A wary Tinseltown reluctantly lined up behind Netflix as the lesser of two evils, only to watch Paramount keep raising its bid until the streamer walked away in February.
From Barron's ● Jul. 20, 2026
Also, I am afraid your columns do not sufficiently extol the value of work, which Voltaire rightly claimed protects us from the evils of boredom, vice, and poverty.
From MarketWatch ● May 13, 2026
The most moving passages in the diaries chronicle her life during the 900-day German siege of Leningrad, which subjected those who remained in the city to the evils of both totalitarianisms.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
At its peak, there were over 6,000 Shakers, joining Ann in rebuking the gruesome, incalculable evils of war and preaching moral generosity.
From Salon ● Dec. 27, 2025
In fact, he had begun to write down lists of all the world’s evils, as if he were building up an army of words to fight some heavenly battle.
From "Where Things Come Back" by John Corey Whaley
Vocabulary lists containing evil
Bush's Address on 9/11
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"Frankenstein" and "How Frankenstein Began"
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"The Flying Machine" by Ray Bradbury
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