malinger
/məˈlɪŋɡɚ/verb
malinger is spelled M-A-L-I-N-G-E-R: 8 letters. It appears about once in every 66 million words in written English, the 255,765th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, malinger means “To feign illness, injury, or incapacitation in order to avoid work, obligation, or perilous risk” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in malinger?
| Letters | 8: M-A-L-I-N-G-E-R |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 66 million words; the 255,765th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is malinger?
Malinger appears about once in every 66 million words in written English, the 255,765th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce malinger?
- UK /məˈlɪŋɡə/
- US /məˈlɪŋɡɚ/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-malinger.ogg, En-au-malinger.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with malinger?
2 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as malinger from its last stressed vowel (/ɪŋɡəɹ/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: germinal.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of malinger
- malingers present, singular, he/she/it
- malingering participle, present
- malingered participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does malinger mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To feign illness, injury, or incapacitation in order to avoid work, obligation, or perilous risk.
It is not uncommon on exam days for several students to malinger rather than prepare themselves.
- 2
To self-inflict real injury or infection (to inflict self-harm) in order to avoid work, obligation, or perilous risk.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Malinger in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to feign illness:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | feindre la maladie, faire le malade, se faire porter pâle |
| German | simulieren |
| Portuguese | fingir estar doente |
| Spanish | hacerse el enfermo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does malinger come from?
From French malingrer, from adjective malingre (“delicate, fragile”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).