malus

From Latin, by analogy with bonus (“additional compensation”)

• IPA^(key): /ˈmeɪ.ləs/, /ˈmɑː.ləs/, /ˈmæ.ləs/

malus (plural maluses)

1. (business) The return of performance-related compensation originally paid by an employer to an employee as a result of the discovery of a defect in the performance.

   When bank fired the loan originator, they recovered the last two years of her bonuses under the malus clause in her contract.

2. (rare) A penalty or negative thing.

• May occur in financial services in connection with defaulted loans.
• Sometimes used in reference to games as a negative counterpart to "bonus".

• clawback

• disgorgement

malus

1. plural of malu

• alums, lumas, mauls, musal

From Proto-Italic *malos, related to Oscan mallom and mallud (“bad”), probably from Proto-Indo-European *mel- (“to deceive”), cognate with Lithuanian melas (“lie”) and the first element of Ancient Greek βλάσφημος (blásphēmos, “jinx”). Alternatively, from Proto-Indo-European *(s)mal-, it would then be a cognate with English small.

Originally associated with Ancient Greek μέλας (mélas, “black, dark”), but support for this is waning. Also compare Avestan 𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌𐬌𐬀‎ (mairiia, “treacherous”).

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈma.lus/, [ˈma.ɫʊs]

• Audio (Classical)

  (file)

malus (feminine mala, neuter malum, comparative pēior, superlative pessimus); first/second declension

1. unpleasant, distressing, painful, nasty, bad
   • Abī in malam crucem, malum cruciātum. ― Go to hell, get lost, piss off.
   • Mala rēs. ― Trouble, bad business.
   • Mala aetās. ― Old age.
2. unpleasant to the senses, sight, smell, taste, touch
   • Mala faciēs. ― Ugly face.
3. bad, evil, wicked, mischievous
   • Malus et nēquam homō. ― An evil and wicked man.
   • Dolus malus. ― Deliberate deception, malice afterthought (legal language).
4. destructive, hurtful, noxious, evil
   • Consuētūdō mala. ― A bad habit.
   • Mala vōta, carmina susurrāre. ― To whisper evil spells, incantations.
5. unkind, hostile, abusive
   • Mala verba. ― Abuses.
6. associated with bad luck, unlucky, unfavourable, unfortunate, adverse, evil
   • Mala tempestās. ― Bad, unfavourable, unsuitable weather.
   • Malam fāmam ferre. ― To bring bad reputation, ill fame.
   • Malīs avibus. ― Under evil auspices. (literally, “Under bad birds.”)
   • Reliquiae malae pugnae. ― Remnants of an unsuccessful, adverse battle.
7. poor in condition or capacity, inept
   • Mala merx/mers. ― A bad lot (of persons) .
   • Malā mente esse. ― To be out of one's mind.
   • Pessimus poēta. ― The worst poet.

First/second declension.

This adjective has irregular comparative and superlative degrees.

• comparative: pēior (worse), superlative: pessimus (worst)

• improbus, nēquam, malignus, scelerātus, perversus, prāvus

• bonus, probus, rēctus, integer, castus

From Ancient Greek μηλέα (mēléa) (See also Ancient Greek μᾶλον (mâlon, “apple”), μῆλον (mêlon, “apple”)).

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈmaː.lus/, [ˈmaː.ɫʊs]

• Audio (Classical)

  (file)

mālus f (genitive mālī); second declension

1. an apple tree; specifically, a plant in the genus Malus in the family Rosaceae.

   Malus bifera.

   An apple tree bearing fruit biannually.

   Et steriles platani malos gessere valentes.

   And the fruitless plane trees have borne strong apple trees.

   Felices arbores putantur esse quercus vel malus.

   The fruitful trees are thought to be an oak or apple tree.

Second declension.

• mālus grānāta
• mālus domestica

• Translingual: Malus
• Aromanian: mer
• Italian: melo
• Romanian: măr

By some referred to root mac-, from the Ancient Greek word μακρός (makrós, “long”) and Latin magnus (“long”); but perhaps the same word with malus.

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈmaː.lus/, [ˈmaː.ɫʊs]

mālus m (genitive mālī); second declension

1. a mast of a ship

   Antemnas ad malos destinare.

   To fasten the sails to the masts.

   Malum erigi imperavit.

   He has ordered the mast to be erected.

   Attolli malos.

   The masts are lifted.

2. a standard or pole to which the awnings spread over the theater were attached
3. the beam in the middle of a winepress
4. the corner beams of a tower

   Turrium mali.

   Beams of the towers.

Second declension.

• malus in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• malus in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• malus in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition, 1883–1887)
• malus in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire Illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book‎, London: Macmillan and Co.
  • (ambiguous) to be broken down by misfortune: in malis iacere
    
  • (ambiguous) to be hard pressed by misfortune: malis urgeri
    
  • (ambiguous) to have a good or bad reputation, be spoken well, ill of: bona, mala existimatio est de aliquo
    
  • (ambiguous) moral science; ethics: philosophia, in qua de bonis rebus et malis, deque hominum vita et moribus disputatur
    
  • (ambiguous) to take a thing in good (bad) part: in bonam (malam) partem accipere aliquid
    
  • (ambiguous) my mind forebodes misfortune: animus praesāgit malum
    
  • (ambiguous) my mind forebodes misfortune: animo praesagio malum
    
  • (ambiguous) a guilty conscience: conscientia mala or peccatorum, culpae, sceleris, delicti
    
  • (ambiguous) to be tormented by remorse: conscientia mala angi, excruciari
    
  • (ambiguous) to bless (curse) a person: precari alicui bene (male) or omnia bona (mala), salutem
    
  • (ambiguous) from beginning to end: ab ovo usque ad mala (proverb.)
    
• malus in The Perseus Project (1999) Perseus Encyclopedia‎
• malus in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898) Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers
• malus in William Smith, editor (1848) A Dictionary of Greek Biography and Mythology, London: John Murray
• malus in William Smith, editor (1854, 1857) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography, volume 1 & 2, London: Walton and Maberly
• malus in William Smith et al., editor (1890) A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, London: William Wayte. G. E. Marindin
• “malus” on page 1069 of the Oxford Latin Dictionary (1st ed., 1968–82)