mauvais
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[edit] French
[edit] Etymology
Middle French from Old French malvais, malveis, alteration of earlier balvais, balveis "bad, wicked", of Germanic origin, from Frankish *balvasi "bad, malicious" from Proto-Germanic *balwa-wīsaz (“‘malicious’”) from Proto-Germanic *balwan (“‘malice, wickedness’”). Akin to Old High German balvasi "bad, malicious", Gothic balwawesei "malice, wickedness", Old Norse bǫlvíss "detestable", Old English bealu, bealw- "baleful, wicked, malicious".
b = m (and vice versa) occurs occasionally in Old French (cf Baphomet for Mahomet). Similar forms from Latin malus "bad" helped in reinforcing the modified form.
[edit] Pronunciation
[edit] Adjective
mauvais
