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Glite Dictionary
ill service

ill service

8.3
An act of help that does harm rather than good
  • noun
translation icon : mal servicio
  • The company's technical support did him an ill service by suggesting the wrong solution.

Examples

  • Sometimes, a friend's unsolicited advice can end up as an ill service.

  • By giving her false confidence, his ill service caused her to fail the exam.

  • The company provided ill service to its customers.

  • Many clients complained about the ill service they received.

  • By giving her false confidence, his ill service caused her to fail the exam.

  • Sometimes, a friend's unsolicited advice can end up as an ill service.

  • The company's technical support did him an ill service by suggesting the wrong solution.

Synonyms

disservice
vsill service
45 5.5

An action that harms someone even though it is meant to help them

is about actions meant to help that instead cause harm or disadvantage
ill turn
vsill service
8.1

An action meant to help that causes harm or trouble

is about actions meant to help that instead cause harm or disadvantage

How Helpful

help
∞ 1.0
ill service
8.3
harm
820 1.0

Surface Forms

ill service singular
ill services plural

Morphology

ill + service

The meaning is directly built from 'ill' (harmful/bad) modifying 'service' (assistance), so it straightforwardly denotes harmful or poor assistance. This adjective+noun composition is a regular, cross-linguistically common pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words can reasonably infer the MWE's meaning despite its somewhat formal or less frequent usage.

Etymology

Ill service comes from ill meaning 'bad' and service meaning 'help'. It shows help that harms, so it means 'help that causes harm'.