Etymology Dictionary

MALADY,  disease, illness.  (F.,—L.)   M.E. maladie, maladye, Chaucer, C. T. 421, 1375.   Also earlier, in O. Eng. Miscellany, ed. Morris, p. 31, l. 13.—F. maladie, 'malady;' Cot.—F. malade, sick, ill; oldest spelling malabde (Littré).   Cf. Prov. malaptes, malautes, malaudes, sick, ill; Bartsch, Chrestomathie.—Lat. male habitus, out of condition; see White, s.v. habitus.—Lat. male, adv., badly, ill, from malus, bad; and habitus, held, kept, kept in a certain condition, pp. of habere, to have.   See Malice and Habit.   ¶ The usual derivation is that given by Diez, who imagined F. malade to answer to male aptus; there appears to be no authority for the phrase, which (like ineptus) would mean 'foolish' rather than 'ill.'   See Mr. Nicol's letter in The Academy, April 26, 1879.   We find male habens, sick, in the Vulgate, Matt. iv. 24, Luke, vii. 2, &c.