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Synonyms

hurtful

American  
[hurt-fuhl] / ˈhɜrt fəl /

adjective

  1. causing hurt or injury; injurious; harmful.

    Synonyms:
    noxious, pernicious, destructive
hurtful British  
/ ˈhɜːtfʊl /

adjective

  1. causing distress or injury

    to say hurtful things
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of hurtful

First recorded in 1520–30; hurt + -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.

Eight days later, Sotomayor issued an apology, saying her comment was inappropriate and hurtful.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 18, 2026

"We don't even know if she took Tylenol during her pregnancy, but that was a hurtful moment for her."

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026

Farage said he liked Parry and had known him "for a very long time", but that his comments were "crass, insensitive, hurtful and wrong".

From BBC • Mar. 24, 2026

She said people have made hurtful comments to her.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026

This kind of hostility bewildered them; they saw it not as an inevitable part of urban life, but as something personal and hurtful.

From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz

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.