Lewis & Short

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1. mălus, a, um, adj. [Sanscr. mala, dirt; Gr. μέλας, black; cf. macula; Germ. mal in Mutter-mal, etc.].
Comp.: pējor, pejus.
Sup.: pessimus, a, um, bad, in the widest sense of the word (opp. bonus), evil, wicked, injurious, destructive, mischievous, hurtful; of personal appearance, ill-looking, ugly, deformed; of weight, bad, light; of fate, evil, unlucky, etc.: malus et nequam homo, Plaut. Ps. 4, 7, 1: pessima puella, Cat. 36, 9; 55, 10: delituit mala, Plaut. Rud. 2, 5, 9: philosophi minime mali illi quidem, sed non satis acuti, Cic. Off. 3, 9, 23: malam opinionem habere de aliquo, id. Verr. 2, 3, 24, § 59: consuetudo, Hor. S. 1, 3, 36: conscientia, Quint. 12, 1, 3: mens, id. ib.: mores, Sall. C. 18: fures, Hor. S. 1, 1, 77: Furiae, id. ib. 2, 3, 135: virus, Verg. G. 1, 129: cicuta, Hor. S. 2, 1, 56: libido, Liv. 1, 57: falx, Verg. E. 3, 11: gramina, id. A. 2, 471: carmen, i. e. an incantation, Leg. XII. Tab. ap. Plin. 28, 2, 4, § 17: abi in malam rem, go and be hanged! Ter. And. 2, 1, 17: pugna, unsuccessful, adverse, Cic. Div. 2, 25, 54; Sall. J. 56: avis, i. e. ill-boding, Hor. C. 1, 15, 5; cf. id. ib. 3, 6, 46: ales, id. Epod. 10, 1: aetas, burdensome, i. e. senectus, Plaut. Aul. 1, 1, 4: haud mala est mulier, not badlooking, id. Bacch. 5, 2, 42: facies, Quint. 6, 3, 32; Ter. Eun. 2, 2, 43: crus, i. e. deformed, Hor. S. 1, 2, 102: pondus, i. e. light, deficient, Plaut. Am. 1, 1, 156.
Of the sick: in malis aeger est, in great danger, Cels. 3, 15 fin.: tempus a quo omnis aeger pejor fiat, id. 3, 5 med.: eo tempore fere pessimi sunt qui aegrotant, id. ib.
In neutr. sing., as adv.: ne gallina malum responset dura palato, Hor. S. 2, 4, 18.
Comp.: pejor, worse: via, Hor. S. 1, 5, 96.
Hence,

    1. 1. mă-lum, i, n., any thing bad, an evil, mischief, misfortune, calamity, etc.
  1. A. In gen.: orarem, ut ei, quod posses mali facere, faceres, Plaut. Bacch. 3, 6, 25: quam sit bellum, cavere malum, Cic. de Or. 1, 58, 247: nihil enim mali accidisse Scipioni puto, id. Lael. 3, 10: hostes inopinato malo turbati, Caes. B. C. 2, 12: externum, i. e. bellum, Nep. Hamilc. 21: ne in cotidianam id malum vertat, i. e. febris, Cels. 3, 15: hoc malo domitos potius cultores agrorum fore, quam, etc., Liv. 2, 34, 11.
  2. B. In partic.
        1. (α) Punishment; hurt, harm, severity, injury: malo domandam tribuniciam potestatem, Liv. 2, 54, 10: malo exercitum coërcere, Sall. J. 100, 5: sine malo, Plaut. Rud. 4, 4, 81; so Ter. Eun. 4, 4, 45; Liv. 4, 49, 11: vi, malo, plagis adductus est, ut frumenti daret, ill-usage, Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 23, § 56: amanti amoenitas malo est: nobis lucro est, is hurtful, injurious, Plaut. Men. 2, 3, 5: clementiam illi malo fuisse, was injurious, unfortunate, Cic. Att. 14, 22, 1: malo hercle magno suo convivat sine modo, to his own hurt, Enn. ap. Non. 474, 23 (Sat. v. 1 Vahl.): olet homo quidam malo suo, Plaut. Am. 1, 1, 165: male merenti bona es: at malo cum tuo, to your own hurt, id. As. 1, 3, 3.
        2. (β) Wrong-doing: causae, quae numquam malo defuturae sunt, Sen. de Ira, 1, 16, 3: sperans famam exstingui veterum sic posse malorum, Verg. A. 6, 527; Anthol. Lat. 1, 178.
        3. (γ) As a term of abuse, plague, mischief, torment: quid tu, malum, me sequere? Plaut. Cas. 1, 3: qui, malum, alii? Ter. Eun. 4, 7, 10: quae, malum, est ista tanta audacia? Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 20, § 54; so id. Off. 2, 15, 53; Curt. 8, 14, 41.
        4. (δ) As an exclamation, alas! misery! Plaut. Capt. 3, 3, 16; id. Men. 2, 3, 37 Brix ad loc.
    1. 2. măle, adv., badly, ill, wrongly, wickedly, unfortunately, erroneously, improperly, etc.: dubitas, quin lubenter tuo ero meus, quod possiet facere, faciat male? will do all the harm to him, etc., Plaut. Poen. 4, 2, 66: si iste Italiam relinquet, faciet omnino male, et, ut ego existimo, ἀλογιστως, will act altogether unwisely, Attic. ap. Cic. Att. 9, 10: di isti Segulio male faciant, do harm to him, punish him, Cic. Fam. 11, 21, 1: o factum male de Alexione! id. Att. 15, 1, 1: male velle alicui, to wish ill, Plaut. As. 5, 1, 13: Karthagini male jamdiu cogitanti bellum multo ante denuntio, cogitare de aliquo, Cic. Sen. 6, 18: male loqui, id. Rosc. Am. 48: male loqui alicui, for maledicere, Ter. Phorm. 2, 3, 25: male accipere verbis aliquem, Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 54, § 140: equitatu agmen adversariorum, male habere, to harass, annoy, Caes. B. C. 1, 63: hoc male habet virum, annoys, vexes him, Ter. And. 2, 6, 5: male se habere, to feel ill, dejected, low-spirited, id. Eun. 4, 2, 6: male est animo, it vexes me, id. Ad. 4, 5, 21: male est animo, I feel unwell, Plaut. Curc. 2, 3, 33: male fit animo, I am beginning to feel bad, am getting unwell, id. Rud. 2, 6, 26: L. Antonio male sit, si quidem, etc., evil betide him! (a formula of imprecation), Cic. Att. 15, 15, 1: quae res tibi vertat male, much harm may it do you! Ter. Ad. 2, 1, 37: male tibi esse malo quam molliter, I would rather you should be unfortunate than effeminate, Sen. Ep. 82, 1: proelium male pugnatum, unsuccessfully, Sall. J. 54, 7: ea quae male empta sunt, at a bad bargain, Cic. Att. 2, 4, 1: male vendere, at a sacrifice, id. Verr. 2, 3, 98, § 227: male reprehendunt praemeditationem rerum futurarum, id. Tusc. 3, 16, 34: male tegere mutationem fortunae, Tac. H. 1, 66: male sustinere arma, unskilfully, Liv. 1, 25, 12: non dubito, quin me male oderit, i. e. very much, intensely, Caes. ap. Cic. Att. 14, 1, 2: male metuo, ne, etc., exceedingly, much, Ter. Hec. 3, 2, 2: rauci, miserably, Hor. S. 1, 4, 66.
      When attached to an adjective, it freq. gives it the opposite meaning: male sanus = insanus, insane, deranged, Cic. Att. 9, 15, 5: male sana, with mind disturbed, Verg. A. 4, 8: gratus, i. e. ungrateful, Ov. H. 7, 27: male fidas provincias, unfaithful, Tac. H. 1, 17: statio male fida carinis, unsafe, Verg. A. 2, 23.
      Comp.: oderam multo pejus hunc quam illum ipsum Clodium, Cic. Fam. 7, 2, 3; cf.: pejusque leto flagitium timet, Hor. C. 4, 9, 50; and: cane pejus vitabit chlamydem, id. Ep. 1, 17, 30.

† 2. mālus, i, f., Gr. μηλέα, an appletree: malus bifera, Varr. R. R. 1, 7: et steriles platani malos gessere valentes, Verg. G. 2, 70: malus granata, the pomegranate, Isid. 17, 7, 6: felices arbores putantur esse quercus … malus, etc., Macr. S. 3, 20, 2.

3. mālus, i, m. [by some referred to root mac-; Gr. μακρος; Lat. magnus; but perh. the same word with 2. malus], an upright mast, pole, or beam.

  1. I. In gen.: malos exaequantes altitudinem jugi surrexit, Front. Strat. 3, 8, 3.
  2. II. Esp.
    1. A. A mast of a ship: ut si qui gubernatorem in navigando agere nihil dicant, cum alii malos scandant, etc., Cic. Sen. 6, 17: malum erigi, vela fieri imperavit, id. Verr. 2, 5, 34, § 88: attolli malos, Verg. A. 5, 829: malo suspendit ab alto, id. ib. 5, 489: saucius, injured, Hor. C. 1, 14, 5.
    2. B. A standard or pole, to which the awnings spread over the theatre were attached, Lucr. 6, 110; Liv. 39, 7, 8.
    3. C. The beam in the middle of a wine-press, Plin. 18, 31, 74, § 317.
    4. D. The corner beams of a tower: turrium mali, Caes. B. G. 7, 22, 4.