social evil
1
6.5
- noun
- /ˈsoʊʃəl ˈiːvəl/
:
maldad social
- Many experts believe that poverty is one of the most pressing social evils affecting society today.
Examples
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The rise of homelessness has become a crucial social evil that governments must address.
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Child abuse is widely and rightly recognized as a great social evil of our time, and I doubt whether there is any professional person or public figure who is not against it.
Blog text (8) -
Weaken the family, and all the social evils mentioned above will mushroom.
Academic text (1991) -
Much of this money is "earned" by the ongoing mistreatment of employees, the fact that women doing the same work are paid 18% less than men, and a host of other social evils.
Blog text (6) -
Liberals are right to feel that social justice matters, that the poor should have greater opportunity, and that government in a democratic society cannot remain indifferent to the existence of great social evils.
Blog text (3) -
The Sheikh stressed the importance of the Muslim community in the West and how to safeguard themselves against the social evils that the Western world offers to Muslims, especially our youth.
Blog text (3) -
These 'Social Gospellers', as they became known, believed that the Second Coming could not happen until humanity had freed itself of all social evils, and that the Church's role in society was to work to that end.
Blog text (24) -
On the negative side, the best constructed and most often cited arguments warn largely against the economic pitfalls and social evils associated with legalized casino gaming.
Academic text (2005) -
Child abuse is widely recognized as a significant social evil that harms families and communities.
Synonyms
51
3.4
A problem that affects many people in a society
6
4.6
Unfair treatment of some people because of who they are
Antonyms
How Harmful
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'a problem or harmful phenomenon in society' is directly derivable from combining 'social' (relating to society) and 'evil' (harm/wickedness); the composition is literal and follows normal adjective + noun semantics, so a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the phrase. Similar adjective+noun constructions for societal problems exist across many languages, supporting immediate comprehensibility.
Etymology
Social evil comes from a simple image: people thought of social as the whole community and evil as a harmful thing that spreads like a sickness. That's why social evil means a problem in society, such as corruption or child labour, that hurts many people.