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mal
/mal/
badly
Il chante très mal.
He sings very badly.
general
in a bad or wrong way; poorly
Elle a réagi très mal à la nouvelle.
She reacted very badly to the news.
Ce médicament agit mal sur moi.
This medicine doesn't agree with me.
Used to describe actions or states that are performed or experienced in a negative or incorrect manner.
Medicine
Medicinegeneral
pain; ache
J'ai mal à la tête.
I have a headache.
Il se plaint de mal au dos.
He complains of back pain.
Often used with 'avoir' (to have) to indicate physical pain in a specific body part.
literaryformal
evil; harm
Le mal triomphe parfois.
Evil sometimes triumphs.
Refers to moral evil or harm in a philosophical or abstract sense.
Collocations
Antonyms
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Distinguishing 'mal' as adverb vs. noun
'Mal' as an adverb (badly) is invariable and used after verbs (e.g., 'chanter mal'). As a noun (pain/evil), it is often used with 'avoir' (e.g., 'J'ai mal à la gorge').
Gold Rule
Position of 'mal' in sentences
As an adverb, 'mal' typically follows the verb it modifies. As a noun, it often appears in fixed expressions like 'avoir mal à' or 'faire mal'.
Word Origin
From Old French 'mal', from Latin 'male' (badly), adverbial form of 'malus' (bad).
Usage Notes
As an adverb, 'mal' is invariable and always follows the verb it modifies. As a noun, it can be used in expressions like 'le mal' (evil) or 'avoir mal' (to be in pain).
Word Breakdown
mal
badly; pain; evil
rootDictionnaire Français-Anglais