as in harmful
causing or capable of causing harm
the damaging effects of the sun on unprotected skin
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in injuring
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
the explosion in the sewers damaged the entire city's water supply
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wounding
to cause bodily damage to
his knee was badly damaged in the accident, and he walked with a limp for months
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of damaging
Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 29 Mar. 2025
In early March, tropical storm Alfred battered Australia’s heavily populated east coast, lashing the region with damaging winds and heavy rain for several days as hundreds of thousands of homes in southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales lost power.
—Edward Szekeres and Helen Regan, CNN Money, 28 Mar. 2025
This weekend, North Texas is expected to see damaging winds and possible hail.
—CBS News, 28 Mar. 2025
That meant a cocktail of damaging offensive droughts, an inability to control ball-handlers off the dribble, an inability to stop sustained runs, too many offensive rebounds and put-backs by the opponent, mindless turnovers and second half collapses.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for damaging
Adjective
Severe thunderstorms are possible overnight Saturday around Kansas City, with the greatest threat from the storms being damaging winds and large hail, according to the National Weather Service.
—Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 29 Mar. 2025
In early March, tropical storm Alfred battered Australia’s heavily populated east coast, lashing the region with damaging winds and heavy rain for several days as hundreds of thousands of homes in southeast Queensland and northern New South Wales lost power.
—Edward Szekeres and Helen Regan, CNN Money, 28 Mar. 2025
This weekend, North Texas is expected to see damaging winds and possible hail.
—CBS News, 28 Mar. 2025
That meant a cocktail of damaging offensive droughts, an inability to control ball-handlers off the dribble, an inability to stop sustained runs, too many offensive rebounds and put-backs by the opponent, mindless turnovers and second half collapses.
—Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 16 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for damaging
Recent Examples of Synonyms for damaging
Adjective
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Make sure to not add dyes or sweeteners, which can be harmful to hummingbirds.—
Claire Hoppe Norgaard,
Better Homes & Gardens,
1 Apr. 2025
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Our biochemical response to that type of stress is to release cortisol which eventually leads to the harmful downstream effects on our bodies, such as high blood pressure.—
Andrea Kane,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Meanwhile, a car plowed through a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, on Friday night, killing five people and injuring some 200 others.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
23 Dec. 2024
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The anti-immigrant rhetoric has been so acute that an anti-immigration far-right extremist in Germany — ironically himself an immigrant — just attacked a holiday market, killing at least five and injuring hundreds.—
New York Daily News Editorial Board,
New York Daily News,
23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Data shows how detrimental bad habits can be relative to the buy-and-hold investor.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
5 Apr. 2025
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The Institute for the Study of War said Friday that Russian strikes on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure under the cover of the ceasefire on energy strikes were detrimental to establishing peace.—
John W. Dean,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Both teams possess forwards who are dangerous when running in behind defences.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
6 Apr. 2025
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Many of the surf zone fatalities occur when distant hurricanes send swells to shore that create dangerous conditions at the coast, such as strong surf and rip currents, the hurricane center stated.—
Dinah Voyles Pulver,
USA Today,
6 Apr. 2025
Verb
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For example, Netflix uses it to deliver seamless streaming to millions, scaling efficiently without compromising speed.—
Jyothish R,
Forbes,
27 Dec. 2024
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Now, as Teddy barrels ahead with a Senate campaign, they are targeted by an anonymous leaker showing them in compromising positions.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
26 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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The foreign material could pose serious adverse health consequences, leading the FSIS to consider the recall a Class I—the agency's highest level of alert.—
Abigail Wilt,
Southern Living,
7 Apr. 2025
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And while the metal is usually excreted from the body, and most people experience no adverse side effects, previous research has shown some gadolinium particles have been left behind.—
John W. Dean,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Apr. 2025
Verb
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The fate of the company remains uncertain, and efforts to preserve its American roots could end up harming workers in Pennsylvania in the long run.—
Alan Rappeport,
New York Times,
3 Jan. 2025
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Even in the absence of barriers, a self-driving car would’ve stopped short of harming the crowd assembled in New Orleans on Wednesday, Missy Cummings, a professor of systems engineering and director of Mason Autonomy and Robotics Center at George Mason University, told ABC News.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
2 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Since Trump’s Wednesday announcement, the stock market plummeted to its worst position since March 2020.—
Ashleigh Fields,
The Hill,
5 Apr. 2025
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Jack: This is just a bad team that has occasionally had good days.—
The View from the Lane,
New York Times,
5 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Damaging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/damaging. Accessed 13 Apr. 2025.
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