as in evil
not conforming to a high moral standard; morally unacceptable
the chaste heroines and nefarious villains of old-time melodramas
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Recent Examples of nefarious
Evil takes root: Darkness rises in The Rings of Power season 2
Bower is no stranger to the world of fantasy, having played the nefarious Vecna/001 on Stranger Things, Gellert Grindelwald in the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts franchises, and a member of the Volturi in the Twilight saga.
—
EW.com, 27 Feb. 2025
Follow the never nefarious writer of this newsletter on social media @jimreineking.
—Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2025
Prominent members of Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party -- which has long made unfounded accusations of foreign influence in national elections -- seized on it as evidence of a nefarious U.S. plot.
—Anant Gupta and Sammy Westfall The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 23 Feb. 2025
The Trump administration compounded this nefarious act by getting the private sector to follow its lead.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 22 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nefarious
EW.com, 27 Feb. 2025
Follow the never nefarious writer of this newsletter on social media @jimreineking.
—Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 25 Feb. 2025
Prominent members of Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party -- which has long made unfounded accusations of foreign influence in national elections -- seized on it as evidence of a nefarious U.S. plot.
—Anant Gupta and Sammy Westfall The Washington Post, arkansasonline.com, 23 Feb. 2025
The Trump administration compounded this nefarious act by getting the private sector to follow its lead.
—Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 22 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for nefarious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nefarious
Adjective
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Hot on the trail of a new brood of evil Mogwai, our heroes journey deep into the American West, coming up against new supernatural creatures and picking up a few mysterious characters along the way.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
6 Mar. 2025
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Fans have long waited to see how the show, produced by Skybound Entertainment, adapts this massive event from Kirkman's comics, which sees Angstrom (Sterling K. Brown) assemble an army of evil Marks from alternate dimensions to lay siege to Earth.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Their actions have sparked numerous lawsuits, and on Thursday, a federal judge in California found that the mass firings of probationary employees were likely unlawful.—
Kristin Brown,
CBS News,
28 Feb. 2025
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Alsup’s order is a temporary measure that requires OPM to notify agencies that its directive was unlawful.—
Ashley Oliver,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Under Taliban rule, morality laws are strictly enforced, and activities considered immoral or against Islamic principles—such as pornography, adultery, or LGBTQ+ content—are harshly punished.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
28 Feb. 2025
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Some view his proposal to take over Gaza as outlandish or immoral, and are no fans of Israel’s right-wing government.—
Katie Glueck,
New York Times,
15 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Michelle Yeoh Yeoh may be in her villain era, but there's nothing sinful about her Louvre look.—
Edward Segarra,
USA TODAY,
5 Mar. 2025
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The dominant Christian theology of the Middle Ages held that wealth was inherently sinful in a world where most people toiled in terrible poverty.—
Brian Klaas,
The Atlantic,
7 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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More than 80 women went public with horrific tales of his brutal, coercive and punishing tactics, including launching vicious, career-crippling smear campaigns against those who eluded him, from Mira Sorvino to Ashley Judd.—
Scott Huver,
The Hollywood Reporter,
28 Feb. 2025
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Rushdie has since spoken out about the stabbing Rushdie, 77, testified in the Chautauqua County, New York trial and detailed the vicious attack that upended his life.—
Alana Wise,
NPR,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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As are the people supporting or justifying these vile acts of terrorism.—
Bobby Zirkin,
Baltimore Sun,
24 Feb. 2025
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And for anyone who's forgotten just how vile Whitfield is, the next scene serves as a nasty reminder.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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But doctors have begun to suspect that this year's flu season—the most severe in over 15 years—has taken a yet darker turn for children.—
Ars Technica,
Ars Technica,
27 Feb. 2025
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Master of maturation Andrea Wilson adds her own tasting notes, describing baking spice, dark fruit, toffee, fragrant citrus, and floral notes on the palate, followed by a round, complex finish.—
Jonah Flicker,
Robb Report,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The state of our budget and our debt is bad for the country and bad for working families.—
Charlotte Alter,
TIME,
28 Feb. 2025
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However, irrational exuberance can leads stocks of good companies to be bad stocks.—
Hersh Shefrin,
Forbes,
28 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nefarious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nefarious. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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