-lənt adjective
Etymology: Middle English, from Latin pestilent-, pestilens, from pestis plague
1. : destructive of life : fatal , deadly
a pestilent land where people died like flies — Maurice Carr
2. : injuring or endangering society : pernicious
grew impatient with such pestilent heresies — V.L.Parrington
3. : giving rise to annoyance : vexing, irritating
pestilent outsiders … assailing the reputation of the neighborhood — Arthur Morrison
4. archaic : infectious , contagious
• pes·ti·lent·ly adverb