<p>The French words <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/bon-vs-bien-1368817" data-component="link" data-source="inlineLink" data-type="internalLink" data-ordinal="1"><strong>bon</strong></a> and <strong>bien</strong>, <a href="https://www.thoughtco.com/mauvais-vs-mal-1368877" data-component="link" data-source="inlineLink" data-type="internalLink" data-ordinal="2"><strong>mauvais</strong></a> and <strong>mal</strong> are often mixed up. This is because the two pairs have similar meanings: <strong>bon</strong> and <strong>bien</strong> are <strong>positive</strong> while <strong>mauvais</strong> and <strong>mal</strong> are <strong>negative</strong>. In addition all four of these words can be adjectives, adverbs, or nouns. <strong>Bon</strong> and <strong>mauvais</strong> are usually adjectives, while <strong>bien</strong> and <strong>mal</strong> are usually adverbs.</p><p>The following table summarizes the differences between each pair; click the links below for more information.</p><table align="center" border="0" cellpadding="10" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td><strong>adjective</strong></td><td> good</td><td>well</td><td>bad</td><td>wrong</td></tr><tr><td><strong>adverb</strong></td><td>nice</td><td>well</td><td>bad</td><td>badly</td></tr><tr><td><strong>noun</strong></td><td>form</td><td>good(s) </td><td>bad part</td><td> evil</td></tr></tbody></table>