BharatNotes Malfeasance
noun (uncountable; also countable as 'a malfeasance')Usage in a UPSC answer
The CBI chargesheet alleged systematic malfeasance in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme implementation, with muster rolls fabricated to siphon funds meant for rural wage-workers in three Jharkhand districts.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
malfeasant (adjective/noun), misfeasance (noun), nonfeasance (noun), malfeasor (rare noun)
Root
Old French mal- = badly, wrongly + faisance = doing (from faire = to do, from Latin facere)
Etymology
From Anglo-French malfaisance, entering English legal vocabulary in the 17th century. The Old French mal (badly) derives from Latin malus (bad, evil), and faisance comes from faire (to do), rooted in Latin facere (to make, do). The term was primarily a legal term distinguishing wrongful official acts from simple negligence or omission, and entered common administrative parlance through 18th-century English common law.
Memory Hook
MAL (bad) + FEASANCE (doing): Malfeasance is BAD DOING by someone in power. Compare 'malnutrition' (bad nutrition), 'malice' (bad intent) — all 'mal-' words are bad. A public official committing malfeasance is doing something BAD that their office should never do.
How This Word Works in UPSC Writing
The performance of an act that is positively unlawful by a public official. It sits in a three-part scheme worth memorising for GS4, since precision here is quickly rewarded: malfeasance is doing what is unlawful, misfeasance is doing a lawful act improperly, and nonfeasance is failing to act where there was a duty. Using the right one shows command that a general word like corruption cannot.
Don’t Confuse It With
Malfeasance is an unlawful act. Misfeasance is a lawful act performed wrongly or negligently. Nonfeasance is the omission of a required act. Corruption is a broader category usually involving abuse of office for private gain, which may take any of the three forms.
Hindi Meaning
दुराचरण (durācharan) or अवैध कृत्य (avaidh kritya).
Common Questions
- What is malfeasance?
- The commission of an act by a public official that is positively unlawful.
- What is the difference between malfeasance, misfeasance and nonfeasance?
- Malfeasance is doing something unlawful, misfeasance is doing a lawful act improperly, and nonfeasance is failing to perform a duty at all.
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