sinister

(sĭn'ĭ-stər)
adj.

1. Suggesting or threatening evil: a sinister smile.
2. Presaging trouble; ominous: sinister storm clouds.
3. Attended by or causing disaster or inauspicious circumstances.
4. On the left side; left.
5. Heraldry. Situated on or being the side of a shield on the wearer's left and the observer's right.

[Middle English sinistre, unfavorable, from Old French, from Latin sinister, on the left, unlucky.]

sinisterly sin'is·ter·ly adv.
sinisterness sin'is·ter·ness n.

SYNONYMS   sinister, baleful, malign. These adjectives apply to what is indicative of or threatens great harm, disaster, or evil. Sinister usually implies impending or lurking danger that makes its presence felt by ominous signs or portents: We heard a sinister laugh from behind the door. Baleful intensifies the sense of menace; it suggests a deadly, virulent, or poisonous quality: The guard's baleful glare frightened the children. Malign applies to what manifests an evil disposition, nature, influence, or intent: "The Devil . . . with jealous leer malign/Eyed them askance" (John Milton).

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adjective

Strongly suggestive of great harm, menace, or evil: baleful, malign. See warn/invite.

adj

Definition: nasty, menacing
Antonyms: benevolent, good, innocent, kind, nice

IN BRIEF: Evil, suggesting trouble.

When a sinister person means to be your enemy, they always start by trying to become your friend. — William Blake (1757-1827), English poet.

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• Genres: Rock

Biography

Sinister got its start in 1989 when death metal was just starting to gain momentum around the world as a movement. Signing to Nuclear Blast in 1991, they would go on to release five albums between that time and 1998, when they left the label. Moving to Hammerheart Records the next year, they found a new singer in Rachel Heyzer, making them one of the only death metal bands with a female vocalist. Their first album with her, 2001's Creative Killings, was their sixth altogether. The band broke up in 2004, but reconstituted itself a year later with original members Adrie Kloosterwaard (previously drums, then vocals) and Alex Paul (previously bass, then guitar) along with new members Bas van den Bogaard on bass and Edwin van den Eeden on drums. ~ Bradley Torreano, Rovi

Latin left; used to describe the left, or counterclockwise, configuration of one of the two faces of a compound containing a trigonal carbon atom. It is designated by the prefix si-. Compare rectus. See also Re/Si convention.

Previous:	sinigrin, singly labelled, singleton
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[L.] left; on the left side.

For a list of words related to sinister, see:

• Bad, False, Evil, Insincere, or Dishonest

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See words rhyming with "sinister."

  See crossword solutions for the clue Sinister.

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Dansk (Danish)
adj. - ildevarslende, uhyggelig, skummel, truende, ond, skadelig

Nederlands (Dutch)
sinister, onheilspellend

Français (French)
adj. - sinistre, (Hérald) senestre

Deutsch (German)
adj. - finster, unheilvoll

Ελληνική (Greek)
adj. - απειλητικός, δυσοίωνος, δόλιος, καταχθόνιος, ολέθριος, (απαρχ.) αριστερός

Italiano (Italian)
sinistro

Português (Portuguese)
adj. - sinistro, ameaçador, funesto

Русский (Russian)
дурной, зловещий, мрачный, нечестный, низкий, злополучный, пагубный, находящийся слева

Español (Spanish)
adj. - siniestro, de mal agüero, siniestrado

Svenska (Swedish)
adj. - olycksbådande, ödesdiger, illvillig, elak, lömsk, ond, ohygglig

中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
不吉利的, 左边的, 凶恶的

中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
adj. - 不吉利的, 左邊的, 兇惡的

한국어 (Korean)
adj. - 불길한, (방패의) 왼쪽의 , 악의 있는

日本語 (Japanese)
adj. - 不吉な, 凶の, 悪意のある

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(صفه) منحوس, , فاسد, شرير‏

עברית (Hebrew)
adj. - ‮מבשר רע, מאיים, מרושע, מצד שמאל‬

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