harmful
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- harmfully adverb
- harmfulness noun
- quasi-harmful adjective
- quasi-harmfully adverb
- unharmful adjective
- unharmfully adverb
Etymology
Origin of harmful
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English hearmful; harm, -ful
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
An occasional deficit can reflect temporary capital inflows or cyclical demand and need not be harmful.
Another recent study led by Han found that volunteering helped counter the harmful effects of chronic stress on systemic inflammation -- a known biological pathway linked to cognitive decline and dementia.
From Science Daily
“At the time,” Nacua posted on Instagram, “I had no idea this act was antisemitic in nature and perpetuated harmful stereotypes against Jewish people.”
From Los Angeles Times
“By choosing not to use the standard generational labels when they’re not appropriate, we can avoid reinforcing harmful stereotypes or oversimplifying people’s complex lived experiences,” wrote Kim Parker, director of social trends research at Pew.
From Salon
Sentencing him, Judge Vanessa Francis told Crump his offending was "breathtakingly harmful" and the trust placed in him meant he thought he "could get away with it".
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
