self-harm

noun

ˌself-ˈhärm

: the act of purposely hurting oneself (as by cutting or burning the skin) as an emotional coping mechanism

Although most cutters are young women who have been emotionally, sexually, or physically abused as children, [Marilee] Strong's research shows that this specific type of self-harm also appears in other groups.—

Maria Simson et al.

called also self-injury, self-mutilation

self-harm intransitive verb

self-harmed; self-harming; self-harms

teenagers who self-harm

Examples of self-harm in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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According to lawsuits filed in Texas and Florida against the company, its chatbots have encouraged children to engage in self-harm and violence against their parents, and allegedly contributed to 14-year-old dying by suicide. —

Wired Staff, WIRED, 30 Dec. 2024 Their query might be a sign of potential self-harm. —

Lance Eliot, Forbes, 23 Dec. 2024 These cognitive effects also help explain why people are susceptible to self-harm and substance abuse late at night, research by Brown’s colleagues suggests. —

Jamie Ducharme, TIME, 23 Dec. 2024 Half of Wisconsin high schoolers reported feeling anxious, a third depressed and a fifth self-harming, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey in 2021, Antigo, a town of about 8,000 and the county seat of Langlade County, is no different. —

Rebecca Loroff, Journal Sentinel, 23 Dec. 2024 See all Example Sentences for self-harm