evil eye.

1. A gaze believed in some traditions to bring harm or misfortune, or the supposed influence of that gaze.

2. A hostile or sharply disapproving look given to someone.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• belief in the evil eye
• ward off the evil eye

On the page

The charm was meant to ward off the evil eye, according to the account’s narrator.

Belief in the evil eye shaped how the visitors praised the new child.

Usage notes

Primary category: horror. Forms: Usually the evil eye; plural evil eyes for literal looks or depicted symbols. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.