Maloperation

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An action performed inappropriately or flawed in execution resulting in negative consequences
2. An operation carried out with errors or missteps that leads to unintended results or complications
3. An instance of carrying out a task wrongly or with mistakes that cause adverse effects

Etymology: "Maloperation" is a plain compound: the Latin-derived prefix "mal-", from Old French and ultimately Latin "malus" meaning "bad" or "evil", attached to "operation". The second part comes through Old French "operacion" from Latin "operatio", a noun of action built on "operari", to work or to act, from "opus", work. The prefix does most of the shaping here. English has long used "mal-" to mark something done badly or wrongly, as in "malfunction" and "malformation", and "maloperation" follows that pattern, joining it to "operation" to describe a procedure that goes wrong through missteps. Its meaning rests on the sense of working, now carried mainly by "operation", with "mal-" turning that sense toward error.

Synonyms: mismanagement, malfunction, misconduct

Antonyms: proper operation, functioning