Meanings
mala1
mala2
- pluralplural of malum
mala3
plural malas
- HinduismSikhismA bead or a set of beads commonly used by Hindus and Buddhists for keeping count while reciting, chanting, or mentally repeating a mantra or the name or names of a deity.
His words were like beads on the string of a mala, escaping his lips in small puffs of air.
2021, Ruth Ozeki, The Book of Form and Emptiness, Canongate Books (2022), page 413Synonyms: japamala
mala4
mala5
- uncountableA seasoning made from Sichuan pepper and chilis.
MALA6
- abbreviationuncountablemedicineAbbreviation of metformin-associated metabolic acidosis.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounA bead or a set of beads commonly used by Hindus and Buddhists for keeping count while reciting, chanting, or mentally repeating a mantra or the name or names of a deity.
nounSynonym of rufous hare-wallaby.
Origin
mala · noun
- Latinmāla“the cheekbone, jaw”
- Englishmala
Learned borrowing from Latin māla (“the cheekbone, jaw”).
More words from Latin
Full word history & related roots →mala · noun
Transliteration of Sanskrit माला (mālā, “wreath, garland, crown”).
Full word history & related roots →mala · noun
- Pitjantjatjaramala
- Englishmala
From Western Desert Language, as Pitjantjatjara mala.
More words from Pitjantjatjara
Full word history & related roots →mala · noun
- Mandarin麻 (má)
- Mandarin辣 (là)
- Mandarin麻辣 (málà)
- Englishmala
Borrowed from Mandarin 麻辣 (málà).
More words from Mandarin
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with mala
All rhymes →Anagrams
Cite this entry
mala. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mala
“mala.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mala. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “mala,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/mala.
Source: mala on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.