In Act Four, Scene 3, What conclusions have Malcolm and Macduff come to about Macbeth?Write down three of the words or phrases they use to describe him, and explain what they mean.

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lynnebh eNotes educator| Certified Educator

Malcolm and Macduff are discussing what to do about Macbeth and who will become his successor. Malcolm is pretending not to be qualified to be king because he lacks “the king becoming graces,” but he is testing Macduff’s loyalty to Scotland. The two men agree about how evil Macbeth has become. Three words they used to describe Macbeth are:  tyrant (this appears several times), treacherous, and evil.

Malcolm: This tyrant, whose only name blisters our tongues,

Malcolm: I am not treacherous (but Macbeth is responds MacDuff)

Macduff: Not in the legions
Of horrid hell can come a devil more damned
In evils to top Macbeth

There is also one part where Malcolm outlines several other descriptive words:

Malcolm: I will grant you he is bloody,
Luxurious, avaricious, false, deceitful,
Sudden, malicious, smacking of every sin
That has a name.

As the men continue their discussion, they also call Macbeth a devil and many other things. As far as the meanings of the words, they are all similar - a "tyrant" is an evil leader who rules with total control and cares nothing about his people, only about ambition. A "treacherous" person is one who has betrayed others and "evil" means causing harm or destruction while threatening or deliberately violating morality. All of these words aptly describe Macbeth.