mal

[ˈmal]

/[ˈmal]/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“mal” is in the everyday core of Spanish, ranked #193 in Spanish word frequency and used as a noun.

#193
frequency rank, Spanish
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Carencia de bondad.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

mal vs mi
33% similar
mal vs mm
33% similar
mal vs my
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for mal
PropertyValue
Headwordmal
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈmal]
Letters3
Frequency rank#193
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mal” sits in Spanish frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). mal lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The Spanish entry for mal is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈmal]. Corpus data places it at rank #193 in overall Spanish word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Zero misspellings are on record for mal in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable Spanish rules. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "mi", "mm", "my", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct Spanish form is mal, spelled M-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Carencia de bondad.
  2. 2
    Daño material o moral.
  3. 3
    Infortunio causante de perjuicios.
  4. 4
    Condición anormal del cuerpo que daña o corrompe sus funciones normales, que causa incomodidad o que deteriora la salud.

Synonyms

enfermedaddolenciaachaquepadecimientoafección

Antonyms

bien

This word in other languages

evil(English)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "mal"?
"mal" is spelled M-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈmal].
What does "mal" mean?
As a noun, "mal" means: Carencia de bondad.
What words are commonly confused with "mal"?
"mal" is commonly confused with "mi", "mm", "my". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "mal"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mal" is [ˈmal]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "mal" come from?
"mal" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “mal”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is M-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈmal] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “mi” - see the side-by-side comparison. mal vs mi
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list