Word: malediction (noun)

Associations

"Malediction" means a curse or a bad wish spoken against someone or something. It is often used in a serious or literary context, when someone wishes harm or bad luck on another.

• Example 1: "The old witch whispered a malediction upon the village." Here, it means she cursed the village.
• Example 2: "The hero struggled to break the malediction that had fallen on his family." This means a bad curse or spell.
• Example 3: "The malediction of bad luck seemed to follow him everywhere." This means a harmful or unlucky condition caused by a curse.

A well-known synonym is "curse." The difference is that "malediction" sounds more formal or old-fashioned, often used in literature or historical speech, while "curse" is more common in everyday use.

Substitution

You can replace "malediction" with:

• curse (more common, everyday use)
• hex (a magical or witch’s curse)
• jinx (a curse causing bad luck, often informal)
• imprecation (formal word for a spoken curse)

Each word changes the tone slightly: "hex" and "jinx" suggest magic, "imprecation" is very formal, and "curse" is general.

Deconstruction

The word "malediction" comes from Latin:

• "male-" means "bad" or "evil"
• "-diction" means "speaking" or "saying" (from Latin "dicere" = to say) So, "malediction" literally means "bad speaking" or "speaking evil" — a spoken curse.

Inquiry

• Can you think of a story or movie where a malediction or curse plays an important role?
• Have you ever heard someone say something that felt like a malediction or a strong negative wish?
• How would you feel if someone put a malediction on you? What would you do to stop it?