vicious

UK: /ˈvɪʃəs/ US: /ˈvɪʃəs/ ,(vish′əs)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

vi•cious /ˈvɪʃəs/   adj. 

1. dangerously hateful and ready to do violence;
   immoral or evil;
   depraved:
   a cruel, vicious dictator.
2. spiteful;
   malicious;
   nasty:
   vicious gossip.
3. unpleasantly severe or intense:
   a vicious headache.
4. savage;
   ferocious:
   a vicious temper.

vi•cious•ly, adv. 
vi•cious•ness, n. [uncountable]

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

vi•cious  (vish′əs), adj. 

1. addicted to or characterized by vice;
   grossly immoral;
   depraved;
   profligate:
   a vicious life.
2. given or readily disposed to evil:
   a vicious criminal.
3. reprehensible;
   blameworthy;
   wrong:
   a vicious deception.
4. spiteful;
   malicious:
   vicious gossip; a vicious attack.
5. unpleasantly severe:
   a vicious headache.
6. characterized or marred by faults or defects;
   faulty;
   unsound:
   vicious reasoning.
7. savage;
   ferocious:
   They all feared his vicious temper.
8. Animal Behavior (of an animal) having bad habits or a cruel or fierce disposition:
   a vicious bull.
9. [Archaic.] morbid, foul, or noxious.

• Latin vitiōsus, equivalent. to viti(um) fault, vice¹ + -ōsus -ous
• Anglo-French)
• Middle English (1300–50

vi′cious•ly, adv. 
vi′cious•ness, n. 
Synonyms

• 1. abandoned, corrupt, iniquitous, sinful.
• 4. malevolent.

Antonyms

• 1. moral.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

vicious / ˈvɪʃəs/ adjective

1. wicked or cruel; villainous: a vicious thug
2. characterized by violence or ferocity: a vicious blow
3. unpleasantly severe; harsh: a vicious wind
4. characterized by malice: vicious lies
5. (esp of dogs, horses, etc) ferocious or hostile; dangerous
6. characterized by or leading to vice
7. invalidated by defects; unsound: a vicious inference

Etymology: 14th Century: from Old French vicieus, from Latin vitiōsus full of faults, from vitium a defect

ˈviciously adverb

ˈviciousness noun