🇩🇪German Source WordCode: DE

Bösartigkeit

Pronunciation / Transliteration: bøːs-aːɐ̯t-ɪç-kaɪ̯t

🇬🇧 Direct English Meaning:
Mean-streak/ˈmiːnˌstriːk/
nounCEFR C1 (Advanced)Top #14200 frequency
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🇩🇪 Example Sentence in German:

"Manchmal blitzt bei ihm eine gewisse Bösartigkeit durch."

Comprehensive Definitions & Senses

2 senses
As noun
  1. 1

    A recurring characteristic or disposition to be unkind, cruel, or spiteful.

    "Beneath his charming exterior, he has a definite mean-streak that surprises people."
  2. 2

    A temporary period or instance of behaving with malicious intent or harshness.

    "She showed a sudden mean-streak when she mocked her colleague's presentation."

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Antonyms & Contrasting Words (1)

Linguistic Origin & Historical Etymology

The term combines 'mean' (derived from Old English 'mǣne', meaning base, ignoble, or malicious) and 'streak' (from Old English 'strica', meaning a line or continuous trace of a quality). First appearing in American English during the late 19th century, it evolved to describe a recurring tendency toward cruelty, harshness, or spite in an otherwise neutral personality.

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