disservice

noun

dis·​ser·​vice (ˌ)di(s)-ˈsər-vəs 

: ill service : harm

also : an unhelpful, unkind, or harmful act

misinformation that does a disservice to readers

Synonyms

• inequity
• injury
• injustice
• raw deal
• shaft
• unfairness
• unjustness
• wrong

Examples of disservice in a Sentence

Her comments were a disservice to those volunteers.

you do a great disservice to the professionals at the day-care center when you refer to them as “babysitters”

Recent Examples on the Web

This is a disservice to buyers and creates confusion in the procurement process. —Guy Yehiav, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025

But the even greater disservice would be to ignore what the game is becoming, a geopolitical football in more ways than one. —Oliver Kay, The Athletic, 19 Mar. 2025

This kid is a stud and the Red Sox would be doing themselves a disservice not starting him on the Opening Day roster. —Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 16 Mar. 2025

While scrutiny of public finance decisions is always welcome, outright duplicity regarding the city’s fiscal plan is a disservice to the residents and businesses that depend on critical infrastructure funded by municipal bonds. —Pat Dowell, Chicago Tribune, 24 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1599, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for disservice

• preservice
• interservice
• nervous
• nervus

Kids Definition

disservice

noun

dis·​ser·​vice (ˈ)dis-ˈ(s)ər-vəs 

: an unhelpful, unkind, or harmful act

behavior that did a disservice to the sport