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# vicious

adjective (vicious; more vicious, most vicious)

«vicious» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. Cruel and wanting to hurt; violent: a vicious attack. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#m1)
2. (of an animal) Dangerous and likely to bite or attack. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#m2)
3. Very strong or severe: a vicious storm, a vicious headache. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#m3)
4. «A vicious circle» is a bad situation where one problem causes another that makes the first worse. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#m4)

### In the lessons

In stories: a vicious dog or villain shows danger. In news: vicious attacks or rumours. In safety: keep away from a dog that growls. In everyday life: «vicious circle» explains how problems feed each other.

### Examples

- The vicious dog was kept behind a high fence. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x1)
- Spreading vicious rumours is a kind of bullying. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x2)
- A vicious wind blew the roof tiles off. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x3)
- She has a vicious cough. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x4)
- Not sleeping made him tired, and being tired made him unable to sleep: a vicious circle. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x5)
- The villain gave a vicious laugh. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x6)
- But soon after his father died, and his mother got married again to a man that turned out to be a very vicious step-father, who couldn't abide the little boy. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/#x7)

### Note

Say VISH-us. Noun: viciousness. Do not confuse «vicious» with «viscous» (thick, slow-flowing, like honey). Takes «a»: a vicious dog.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «vicious» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/V/vicious/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«vicious» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/vicious.html) on Mova free.