mal
mæl
A broken machine and a malignant lump: one bad turn
The picture Something that was running straight takes one bad turn and heads the wrong way. Only the thing turning changes. mal is turned the bad way; bene is something good laid on you.
Where the picture shows up in mal
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Working gone wrong
The machine had a malfunction this morning.
ðə məˈʃiːn hæd ə mælˈfʌŋkʃən ðɪs ˈmɔːrnɪŋ
The machine had a malfunction this morning.
Gears that had been turning evenly catch once, slip, and jolt to a stop.
mal(bad) + function(working) = the working gone bad.
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A program gone wrong
Update your laptop; there is malware on it.
ˈʌpdeɪt jʊr ˈlæptɑːp ðer ɪz ˈmælwer ɑːn ɪt
Update your laptop; there is malware on it.
A strange file slipped in among the useful ones, quietly opening a door from inside.
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A skilled hand gone wrong
The clinic was sued for malpractice.
ðə ˈklɪnɪk wəz suːd fɔːr ˌmælˈpræktɪs
The clinic was sued for malpractice.
A hand that skipped one step in the order, and the whole operating table tilts because of that one step.
mal + practice(the doing) = the work done the bad way.
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Feeding gone wrong
The child shows signs of malnutrition.
ðə tʃaɪld ʃoʊz saɪnz əv ˌmælnuːˈtrɪʃən
The child shows signs of malnutrition.
The bowl is emptied every day, yet the child's arms keep getting thinner.
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Growth gone wrong
The test showed the lump is malignant.
ðə test ʃoʊd ðə lʌmp ɪz məˈlɪɡnənt
The test showed the lump is malignant.
A small lump that should have stayed put pushes past its own edge and spreads.
Its opposite, benign, sits on the bene side — the lump that behaves.
All of it in one picture
mal is a bad-direction arrow painted over the word for doing it right. Bend a machine's working and you get a malfunction; bend a program and you get malware; bend a doctor's handiwork and you get malpractice. Bend what a child eats and it is malnutrition; bend the way a lump grows and it is malignant. So when mal turns up, read whatever follows as that same thing gone the wrong way.