evil

adjective

/ˈiːvl/, /ˈiːvɪl/

/ˈiːvl/

Idioms

jump to other results

(of people) enjoying harming others; morally bad and cruel
- Police described the killer as ‘a desperate and evil man’.
- an evil genius/dictator
- President Reagan referred to the Soviet Union as the ‘evil empire’.
- an evil grin
- Her face was full of evil intent.
Extra Examples
- Kristin smiled a particularly evil smile.
- He gave an evil laugh.
- A broad smile hid his evil intentions.
Topics Personal qualitiesb2
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
verbs
- be
- look
- seem
- …
adverb
- particularly
- really
- truly
- …
See full entry
having a harmful effect on people; morally bad
- evil deeds
- In his speech he described the evil effects of racism.
connected with the devil and with what is bad in the world
- It was an ancient charm to ward off evil spirits.
- She had been deceived by an evil demon.
Topics Religion and festivalsb2
extremely unpleasant
- The rubbish bin was giving off an evil smell.

Word OriginOld English yfel, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch euvel and German Übel.

Idioms

the evil hour/day

(often humorous) the time when you have to do something difficult or unpleasant
- I’d better go and see the dentist—I can’t put off the evil hour any longer.
- If you keep on borrowing, you are only postponing the evil day when you have to pay it all back.

somebody’s good/evil genius

(especially British English) a person or spirit who is thought to have a good/bad influence over you

a witch’s/an evil brew

(British English, informal) an unpleasant drink that is a mixture of different things

evil

noun

/ˈiːvl/, /ˈiːvɪl/

/ˈiːvl/

(formal)Idioms

jump to other results

[uncountable] a force that causes bad things to happen; morally bad behaviour
- the eternal struggle between good and evil
- He believed he could rid the world of the forces of evil.
- to fight/combat evil
- the battle/fight/struggle/war against evil
- He was a good man who was forced to do evil.
- You cannot pretend there's no evil in the world.
opposite good
Extra Examples
- He sees money as the root of all evil.
- His simple message was that God will punish those that do evil.
- You can always choose to resist evil.
- a duty to defeat the evil of terrorism
- the intrinsic evil of taking a human life
- the pure evil in his soul
- Humans have the capacity to do more evil than any other species on earth.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- great
- absolute
- pure
- …
verb + evil
- commit
- do
- combat
- …
phrases
- the forces of evil
- good and evil
- a necessary evil
- …
See full entry
[countable, usually plural] a bad or harmful thing; the bad effect of something
- the evils of drugs/alcohol
- They hardly mentioned such social evils as racism and sexism.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary
adjective
- great
- absolute
- pure
- …
verb + evil
- commit
- do
- combat
- …
phrases
- the forces of evil
- good and evil
- a necessary evil
- …
See full entry

Word OriginOld English yfel, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch euvel and German Übel.

Idioms

the lesser of two evils | the lesser evil

the less unpleasant of two unpleasant choicesTopics Preferences and decisionsc2

a necessary evil

a thing that is bad or that you do not like but that you must accept for a particular reason
- The loss of jobs is regarded as a necessary evil in the fight against inflation.

单词	evil
释义	evil adjective /ˈiːvl/, /ˈiːvɪl/ /ˈiːvl/ Idioms jump to other results (of people) enjoying harming others; morally bad and cruel Police described the killer as ‘a desperate and evil man’. an evil genius/dictator President Reagan referred to the Soviet Union as the ‘evil empire’. an evil grin Her face was full of evil intent. Extra Examples Kristin smiled a particularly evil smile. He gave an evil laugh. A broad smile hid his evil intentions. Topics Personal qualitiesb2 Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs be look seem … adverb particularly really truly … See full entry having a harmful effect on people; morally bad evil deeds In his speech he described the evil effects of racism. connected with the devil and with what is bad in the world It was an ancient charm to ward off evil spirits. She had been deceived by an evil demon. Topics Religion and festivalsb2 extremely unpleasant The rubbish bin was giving off an evil smell. Word OriginOld English yfel, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch euvel and German Übel. Idioms the evil hour/day (often humorous) the time when you have to do something difficult or unpleasant I’d better go and see the dentist—I can’t put off the evil hour any longer. If you keep on borrowing, you are only postponing the evil day when you have to pay it all back. somebody’s good/evil genius (especially British English) a person or spirit who is thought to have a good/bad influence over you a witch’s/an evil brew (British English, informal) an unpleasant drink that is a mixture of different things evil noun /ˈiːvl/, /ˈiːvɪl/ /ˈiːvl/ (formal)Idioms jump to other results [uncountable] a force that causes bad things to happen; morally bad behaviour the eternal struggle between good and evil He believed he could rid the world of the forces of evil. to fight/combat evil the battle/fight/struggle/war against evil He was a good man who was forced to do evil. You cannot pretend there's no evil in the world. opposite good Extra Examples He sees money as the root of all evil. His simple message was that God will punish those that do evil. You can always choose to resist evil. a duty to defeat the evil of terrorism the intrinsic evil of taking a human life the pure evil in his soul Humans have the capacity to do more evil than any other species on earth. Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective great absolute pure … verb + evil commit do combat … phrases the forces of evil good and evil a necessary evil … See full entry [countable, usually plural] a bad or harmful thing; the bad effect of something the evils of drugs/alcohol They hardly mentioned such social evils as racism and sexism. Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective great absolute pure … verb + evil commit do combat … phrases the forces of evil good and evil a necessary evil … See full entry Word OriginOld English yfel, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch euvel and German Übel. Idioms the lesser of two evils \| the lesser evil the less unpleasant of two unpleasant choicesTopics Preferences and decisionsc2 a necessary evil a thing that is bad or that you do not like but that you must accept for a particular reason The loss of jobs is regarded as a necessary evil in the fight against inflation.
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