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• harm
  harm

  noun

  physical injury or mental damage; hurt.
• HARM
  HARM

  noun

  a U.S. air-to-surface missile designed to detect and destroy radar sites by homing on their emissions.

harm

¹ American  

[hahrm] / hɑrm /

noun

1. physical injury or mental damage; hurt.

   to do him bodily harm.

   Antonyms:

   benefit

2. moral injury; evil; wrong.

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verb (used with object)

1. to do or cause harm to; injure; damage; hurt.

   to harm one's reputation.

   Synonyms:

   abuse, maltreat

   Antonyms:

   help

HARM ² American  

[hahrm] / hɑrm /

noun

Military.

1. a U.S. air-to-surface missile designed to detect and destroy radar sites by homing on their emissions.

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harm British  

/ hɑːm /

noun

1. physical or mental injury or damage

2. moral evil or wrongdoing

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verb

1. (tr) to injure physically, morally, or mentally

harm Idioms  

1. see do one wrong (harm); out of harm's way.

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Related Words

See damage.

Other Word Forms

• harmer
  noun
• self-harming
  adjective
• unharmed
  adjective
• unharming
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of harm¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English hearm; cognate with German Harm, Old Norse harmr

Origin of HARM²

H(igh-speed) A(nti) R(adiation) M(issile)

Explanation

Harm is a deliberate injury or damage to someone or something. A playground bully is a mean kid who causes harm to other kids. Harm is both a noun and a verb — when you inflict harm on your brother, you harm him. Physically hurting someone is only one way to harm them. If a classmate spreads a mean rumor about you, that also harms you. The Old English root word is hearm, which means "hurt" and "pain," but also "evil" and "insult."

Example Sentences

Depending on where they are located and how they interact with surrounding tissue, senescent cells can either help or harm the body.

From Science Daily • May 22, 2026

Andy Burrows, chief executive of Molly Rose Foundation, a UK-based online safety charity, welcomed the report, calling big tech platforms "complacent and evasive when it comes to protecting children from preventable harm".

From BBC • May 21, 2026

Proponents of harm reduction work point to studies that have shown offering clean needles and other supplies can significantly reduce the spread of diseases such as HIV and Hepatitis.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026

Most of it is unproven, and some could even harm.

From Barron's • May 21, 2026

There is no way to repair the harm to the community, no way any of the people on this worksheet will ever forgive me.

From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz

Related Words

• abuse
• damage
• hurt
• impair
• inconvenience
• maim
• mar
• outrage
• prejudice
• ruin
• sabotage
• sap
• shatter
• shock
• tarnish
• trample
• traumatize
• undermine
• wreck