62 words starting with M

• machination noun

  a secret, clever plan to get something, usually by tricking others

  The novel’s villain used every machination he could think of to control the company.

  Like scheme, plot, intrigue

• maelstrom noun

  a powerful whirlpool in the sea; a situation of wild, confused activity

  The market before Dashain is a maelstrom of shoppers, buses and street sellers.

  Like whirlpool, turmoil, chaos

• magisterial adjective

  showing great authority and expert knowledge; commanding

  Her magisterial book on Himalayan glaciers is now used by scientists everywhere.

  Like authoritative, commanding, masterly

• magniloquent adjective

  using grand, showy words to sound important

  The magniloquent speaker used ten long words where one short one would do.

  Like grandiloquent, pompous, bombastic

• maladroit adjective

  clumsy or awkward, in actions or in handling people

  His maladroit attempt to fix the tap flooded the whole kitchen.

  Like clumsy, awkward, inept

• malady noun

  an illness or disease; a serious problem in a society

  Malaria was once a common malady in the lowlands of the Terai.

  Like illness, ailment, disease

• malaise noun

  a general feeling of discomfort, illness, or unease without a clear cause

  A vague malaise kept him from enjoying the trip, though he was not really sick.

  Like unease, discomfort, disquiet

• malapropism noun

  a funny mistake of using a wrong word that sounds like the right one

  Saying “a pineapple of politeness” instead of “pinnacle” is a famous malapropism.

• malcontent noun

  a person who is always dissatisfied and complains, especially about those in charge

  A few malcontents grumbled about the new timetable, but most students liked it.

  Like complainer, grumbler, faultfinder

• malediction noun

  a curse; words that wish harm on someone

  In the folk tale, the witch’s malediction turned the prince into a frog.

  Like curse, imprecation

• malefactor noun

  a person who does wrong or breaks the law

  The police finally caught the malefactor who had been stealing bicycles from the school.

  Like wrongdoer, offender, criminal

• malevolence noun

  the wish to do harm or evil to others

  The villain’s malevolence showed in the cold way he smiled at his rivals.

  Like malice, spite, ill will

• malfeasance noun

  wrong or illegal conduct by a public official or someone in office

  The auditors found malfeasance in how the official had spent the road fund.

  Like misconduct, wrongdoing, corruption

• malign verb

  to say harmful and untrue things about someone

  Rivals maligned the new shopkeeper, claiming his rice was old and dirty.

  Like slander, defame, disparage

• malinger verb

  to pretend to be sick to avoid work or duty

  The coach suspected that Ram was malingering to skip the long morning run.

  Like shirk, feign illness

• manacle noun

  a metal ring or chain for locking a prisoner’s hands or feet

  The museum in the old fort displays rusty manacles once used on prisoners.

  Like handcuff, shackle, fetter

• mannered adjective

  artificial and showy in style, not natural

  The actor’s mannered way of speaking made his character hard to believe.

  Like affected, artificial, stilted

• maraud verb

  to roam about raiding and stealing

  Pirates once marauded along the coast, stealing cargo from passing ships.

  Like raid, plunder, pillage

• martinet noun

  a very strict person who demands that every rule is obeyed exactly

  The new hostel warden was a martinet who checked our beds every morning.

  Like disciplinarian, stickler, taskmaster

• maudlin adjective

  foolishly and tearfully sentimental

  At the reunion, Uncle grew maudlin, sighing over every old photograph.

  Like sentimental, mawkish, weepy

• maunder verb

  to talk or move about aimlessly and without focus

  The speaker maundered on about his childhood and never reached his main point.

  Like ramble, drift, babble

• mawkish adjective

  sentimental in a sickly, exaggerated way that feels false

  The film’s mawkish ending, full of slow music and tears, made us groan.

  Like sentimental, maudlin, schmaltzy

• meddle verb

  to interfere in someone else’s affairs without being asked

  Please don’t meddle with my science project; I want to finish it myself.

  Like interfere, intrude, pry

• megalomania noun

  an obsession with power and an exaggerated belief in one’s own importance

  In the story, the emperor’s megalomania led him to build statues of himself everywhere.

  Like egomania, grandiosity

• melee noun

  a confused, noisy crowd or struggle with many people

  There was a melee at the gate as fans rushed to get into the football stadium.

  Like scuffle, fracas, commotion

• mellifluous adjective

  sweet and smooth to hear

  The singer’s mellifluous voice filled the hall during the evening concert.

  Like melodious, dulcet, honeyed

• mendacious adjective

  not telling the truth; lying, especially habitually

  The mendacious salesman claimed the old bicycle had never been ridden.

  Like lying, dishonest, untruthful

• mendacity noun

  the habit of telling lies; untruthfulness

  His mendacity was finally exposed when the receipts did not match his story.

  Like dishonesty, lying, deceit

• mendicant noun

  a person who lives by begging, especially a religious beggar

  Each morning, mendicant monks walked through the village with their alms bowls.

  Like beggar, almsman

• mercurial adjective

  changing mood or mind suddenly and unpredictably

  Our mercurial coach could be cheerful one minute and shouting the next.

  Like volatile, fickle, unpredictable

• meretricious adjective

  attractive on the surface but cheap, showy, and of no real value

  The hotel’s meretricious decor, all plastic gold and mirrors, impressed no one.

  Like tawdry, gaudy, flashy

• mettle noun

  courage and determination to keep going in difficult situations

  The steep final climb tested the mettle of every runner in the race.

  Like courage, spirit, grit

• mien noun

  a person’s appearance or manner, showing their mood or character

  The judge’s calm, serious mien made everyone in the room fall silent.

  Like bearing, demeanor, air

• milieu noun

  the social surroundings and setting a person lives or works in

  She grew up in a milieu of artists and musicians in old Patan.

  Like environment, setting, surroundings

• militate verb

  to be a strong factor against something happening

  Heavy snow militated against our plan to cross the pass that week.

  Like work against, hinder

• minatory adjective

  expressing a threat; menacing

  Dark, minatory clouds gathered over the hills, so we hurried home.

  Like threatening, menacing, ominous

• minion noun

  an unimportant follower who obeys a powerful person without question

  The villain sent his minions to fetch the stolen map.

  Like underling, lackey, henchman

• minutiae noun

  tiny, precise, or trivial details

  She loves the minutiae of insect anatomy, down to the hairs on their legs.

  Like details, particulars, trivia

• mire noun

  an area of deep, wet mud; a difficult situation hard to escape

  The bus got stuck in the mire after the monsoon rain washed out the road.

  Like bog, swamp, quagmire

• misanthrope noun

  a person who dislikes and distrusts people in general

  The old misanthrope lived alone on the hill and never greeted his neighbors.

  Like people hater

• misanthropy noun

  a general dislike and distrust of other people

  His misanthropy made him prefer his books and dogs to any human company.

• misconstrue verb

  to understand someone’s words or actions wrongly

  She misconstrued my silence as anger, when I was only tired.

  Like misunderstand, misinterpret, misread

• miscreant noun

  a person who behaves badly or breaks the law

  The miscreants who painted on the temple wall were made to clean it.

  Like wrongdoer, culprit, rascal

• missive noun

  a letter or written message, especially a long or official one

  Grandfather sent a long missive from the village, full of family news.

  Like letter, message, note

• modicum noun

  a small but noticeable amount of something

  With a modicum of patience, anyone can learn to solve the cube.

  Like bit, little, iota

• modish adjective

  fashionable in a current, perhaps short-lived way

  The modish café served coffee in tiny jars because it was the latest trend.

  Like fashionable, trendy, stylish

• molder verb

  to slowly decay and crumble from neglect

  Old books moldered in the damp storeroom until a librarian rescued them.

  Like decay, rot, crumble

• mollify verb

  to calm someone’s anger or upset feelings

  The shopkeeper mollified the angry customer by replacing the broken kettle.

  Like pacify, appease, placate

• moot adjective

  open to argument and not yet decided; no longer mattering in practice

  Whether we should hold the picnic is moot now, since it is raining heavily.

  Like debatable, arguable, academic

• morass noun

  a swampy area of ground; a complicated situation hard to get out of

  The project sank into a morass of forms, meetings and approvals.

  Like swamp, quagmire, mess

• mordant adjective

  sharply and cleverly sarcastic in a biting way

  The critic’s mordant review called the film “two hours I will never get back.”

  Like caustic, biting, scathing

• mores noun

  the customs and moral rules accepted by a particular society

  Visitors should learn local mores, such as removing shoes before entering a home.

  Like customs, conventions, norms

• moribund adjective

  close to dying or ending; no longer active or growing

  The once-busy trade route through the pass is now almost moribund.

  Like dying, declining, stagnant

• motley adjective

  made up of many different, mismatched kinds

  A motley group of hikers, cooks and students gathered at the trailhead.

  Like assorted, varied, heterogeneous

• mottled adjective

  marked with irregular spots or patches of color

  The frog’s mottled green skin hid it perfectly among the wet leaves.

  Like blotchy, speckled, dappled

• mountebank noun

  a person who cheats people with false claims, especially selling fake medicine

  The mountebank at the fair sold a tonic that claimed to cure every illness.

  Like charlatan, quack, swindler

• mulct verb

  to take money from someone by a fine or by cheating

  The fake tour company mulcted tourists of hundreds of dollars.

  Like swindle, defraud, fine

• multifarious adjective

  of many different kinds; having great variety

  Leonardo da Vinci had multifarious talents, from painting to engineering.

  Like diverse, various, manifold

• munificence noun

  great and generous giving

  Thanks to one family’s munificence, the town library doubled in size.

  Like generosity, largess, liberality

• munificent adjective

  extremely generous with money or gifts

  A munificent donor paid for a new science lab at our school.

  Like generous, bountiful, lavish

• mutable adjective

  able or likely to change

  Fashion is mutable, but good manners never go out of style.

  Like changeable, variable, alterable

• myopic adjective

  nearsighted; not thinking about the future or the wider picture

  Cutting down the whole forest for quick profit was a myopic decision.

  Like nearsighted, shortsighted