How do you use the word "evil" in a sentence?

Here are real-life examples of using "evil": That was an evil bunny. Do you know good from evil?

Evil Meaning

/ˈiːvəl/

Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.

Definition

adjIntending to harm; malevolent.

adjMorally corrupt.

Sentence Examples

That was an evil bunny.

Do you know good from evil?

Police described the killer as ‘a desperate and evil man’.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms:

dark black ugly

Antonyms:

good goodness virtuous

CEFR Practice Quiz

The villain's ____ plan aimed to destroy the entire city with a bomb.

CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)

The ancient legends speak of an ____ spirit that haunts the dark corridors of the castle.

Word Origin & History

From Middle English yvel, evel, ivel, uvel, from Old English yfel, from Proto-West Germanic *ubil, from Proto-Germanic *ubilaz, from Proto-Indo-European *h₂up(h₁)élos, a deverbal derivative of *h₂wep(h₁)-, *h₂wop(h₁)- (“treat badly”). See -le for the supposed suffix. Alternatively from *upélos (“evil”, literally “going over or beyond (acceptable limits)”), from Proto-Indo-European *upo, *h₃ewp- (“down, up, over”). Cognates Cognate with Dutch euvel (“evil”), German übel (“bad, evil”), German Low German övel (“evil”), Luxembourgish iwwel (“queasy, nauseous; bad”), Gothic 𐌿𐌱𐌹𐌻𐍃 (ubils, “bad, evil”). Compare Old Irish fel (“bad, evil”), from Proto-Celtic *uɸelos, and Hittite 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒍣 (huwapp-ⁱ, “to mistreat, harass”), 𒄷𒉿𒀊𒉺𒀸 (huwappa-, “evil, badness”).

Literary Quotations & Historical Citations

"For a good while the Miss Brownings were kept in ignorance of the evil tongues that whispered hard words about Molly." — 1864 August – 1866 January, [Elizabeth] Gaskell, chapter 47, in Wives and Daughters. An Every-day Story. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], published 1866, →OCLC:

"He looked at her shapely person with something of the brazen and evil glance that had been so revolting to her in the eyes of those ruffians." — 1916, Zane Grey, chapter 10, in The Border Legion, New York: Harper & Bros., page 147:

"He tells secret dreams to strangers , imagines he can achieve art without discipline , regards all boundaries as evil , ignores ancestors , wants comfort and merging , believes cunning is wrong , and as a scholar or artist doesn't […]" — 1989, Pilgrimage, volume 15, Human Sciences Press, →LCCN, →OCLC, page 7:

"Ah, what a sign it is of evil life, When death’s approach is seen so terrible." — 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iii]:

"I had much trouble at first in breaking him of those evil habits his father had taught him to acquire […]" — 1848, Anne Brontë, chapter 41, in The Tenant of Wildfell Hall:

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