as in detrimental
causing or capable of causing harm
DDT has been proven to be extremely harmful to the environment
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Recent Examples of harmful
People should avoid any social media challenge asking them to take medicines, whether prescription or over the counter, or to partake in other potentially harmful activities.
—
Katia Hetter, CNN, 5 Mar. 2025
Aside from shower head filters, a clarifying shampoo is the ultimate solution to combating build-up on your scalp caused by natural oil production (or perhaps worsened by poor water quality rich in harmful minerals).
—Arden Fanning Andrews, Vogue, 4 Mar. 2025
If left sitting out for too long, harmful bacteria such as E.Coli, listeria, and salmonella can grow and pose a serious risk to your furry friend.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2025
Studies have shown that testers can harbor harmful bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus (a common cause of styes and other infections), E. coli, yeast, and mold.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for harmful
Katia Hetter, CNN, 5 Mar. 2025
Aside from shower head filters, a clarifying shampoo is the ultimate solution to combating build-up on your scalp caused by natural oil production (or perhaps worsened by poor water quality rich in harmful minerals).
—Arden Fanning Andrews, Vogue, 4 Mar. 2025
If left sitting out for too long, harmful bacteria such as E.Coli, listeria, and salmonella can grow and pose a serious risk to your furry friend.
—Mary Cornetta, Better Homes & Gardens, 4 Mar. 2025
Studies have shown that testers can harbor harmful bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus (a common cause of styes and other infections), E. coli, yeast, and mold.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for harmful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harmful
Adjective
-
In addition to losing the benefits for our kids, this loss of funds is a huge blow to community farmers and ranchers and is detrimental to school meal programs struggling to manage rising food and labor costs.—
Khaleda Rahman,
Newsweek,
13 Mar. 2025
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And this is detrimental to the drill baby drill strategy of the Trump administration.—
Ian Dexter Palmer,
Forbes,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The cyclone was already bringing heavy rainfall to coastal areas on Saturday, along with damaging winds and storm surges.—
Hilary Whiteman,
CNN,
7 Mar. 2025
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Choosing the wrong treatment can be damaging, or even fatal.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Part of this season’s focus has been on building his partnership with Murphy, whose primary attacking role is to find Isak in dangerous areas, and encouraging his team-mates to involve the striker whenever possible.—
Chris Waugh,
The Athletic,
14 Mar. 2025
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Paved highways meant dangerous going for horse and rider, and her only mishap of the trip would come at Portland, when Goldie slipped on rain-slick pavement and fell on his rider and broke her leg, resulting in a delay of several weeks.—
Ben East,
Outdoor Life,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Environmental groups have long opposed the new reservoir and objected to a shorter judicial review, saying the project will release unacceptable amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas, into the air in addition to other adverse impacts.—
Ari Plachta,
Sacramento Bee,
28 Feb. 2025
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Severe chikungunya-like adverse reactions occurred in 1.6% of IXCHIQ recipients and none of the placebo recipients, according to the FDA.—
Jacqueline Howard,
CNN,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Jayson Tatum kept the Celtics in the game most of the night with 33 points, eight assists and eight rebounds, but Brown had one of his worst games of the year with just 10 points.—
Jay King,
The Athletic,
13 Mar. 2025
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The market, however, believes the opposite: That a trade war is bad, is easy to lose, and could plunge the U.S. into an avoidable recession.—
Rebecca Falconer,
Axios,
12 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Harmful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harmful. Accessed 16 Mar. 2025.
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