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How do you spell Malicious?

Correct spelling

malicious

MALIC + IOUS. Think: malice.

Why is malicious spelled this way?

From Latin malitia, badness. MALUS (bad). Malicious intent is bad intent — the word describes harm that is deliberate and knowing.

Common misspellings of malicious

malicousmalisiousmaliciciousmalishious

Example

The attack was malicious.

Frequently asked questions

How do you spell malicious?+
The correct spelling is "malicious". MALIC + IOUS. Think: malice.
Is it malicous or malicious?+
The correct spelling is "malicious", not "malicous". This word gets 6,000+ monthly searches.

Other commonly misspelled words

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More spelling guides

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