Sinister

Look up sinister in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Sinister means the following:

1. Of or on the left side; left. This is the original Latin meaning, believed to have passed into English through Old French sinistre.

2. In heraldry, the side of an escutcheon or coat of arms that is to the left of the bearer (opposed to dexter)

3. In the Middle Ages it was believed that when a person was writing with their left hand they were possessed by the Devil. (This was uncommon, particularly as there were fewer literate people). Left-handed people were therefore considered to be evil. Hence, the most common present-day meanings:

4. Threatening or portending evil, harm, or trouble; ominous: a sinister remark

5. Bad, evil, base, or wicked; fell: his sinister purposes

6. Unfortunate; disastrous; unfavorable: a sinister accident

Sinister may also refer to:

• Bend (heraldry), Bend sinister, heraldic charge
• Baton sinister, diminutive of the bend sinister

In comic books and literature:

• Mister Sinister, Marvel Comics supervillain
• Sinister Six, Marvel Comics supervillain group
• Sinister Twelve, Marvel Comics supervillain group
• Spider-Man: Return of the Sinister Six, comic-related video game
• Sinister Dexter, comic book
• Simon Bar Sinister, villain on the Underdog cartoon show
• Bend Sinister, novel by Vladimir Nabokov
• The Sinister Signpost, Hardy Boys novel by Franklin W. Dixon

In music:

• Sinister (band), from the Netherlands
• Sinister Footwear, orchestral ballet by Frank Zappa in three movements
• The Sinister Urge, album by Rob Zombie
• Sinister Slaughter, album by the band Macabre
• Bend Sinister (album), album by the band The Fall
• If You're Feeling Sinister, album by the band Belle & Sebastiane
• If You're Feeling Sinister: Live at the Barbican, live album by Belle & Sebastian

See also

• The Sinister Minister
• Synyster Gates, guitarist
• Dexter

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