injurious
Americanadjective
-
harmful, hurtful, or detrimental, as in effect.
injurious eating habits.
- Synonyms:
- ruinous, destructive, baneful, pernicious, deleterious, damaging
- Antonyms:
- beneficial
-
doing or involving injury or wrong, as to another.
injurious behavior.
- Synonyms:
- inequitable, prejudicial, wrongful, unjust
-
insulting; abusive; defamatory; offensive.
an injurious statement.
- Synonyms:
- libelous, slanderous, derogatory
- Antonyms:
- complimentary
adjective
-
causing damage or harm; deleterious; hurtful
-
abusive, slanderous, or libellous
Other Word Forms
- injuriously adverb
- injuriousness noun
- noninjurious adjective
- noninjuriously adverb
- noninjuriousness noun
- preinjurious adjective
- quasi-injurious adjective
- quasi-injuriously adverb
- self-injurious adjective
- uninjurious adjective
- uninjuriously adverb
- uninjuriousness noun
Etymology
Origin of injurious
1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin injūrius or injūriōsus. See injury, -ous
Explanation
Injurious things should be avoided. They cause pain, harm, and — yes — injuries. Handle with care! If you know what an injury is, you have a head start on learning injurious. Anything injurious is dangerous. At a construction site, almost anything could be injurious, if you don't know what you're doing (or even if you do). Falling off a ladder could be very injurious. Even crossing the street can have injurious effects if you're hit by a car. If this word turns up in your diary a dozen times, you're probably in the hospital.
Vocabulary lists containing injurious
Declaration of the Rights of Woman (1791)
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Emma
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"The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" (Excerpt 3)
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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.
In John Scott’s 1880 book “The Story of the Sewing Machine,” Hunt’s daughter reportedly said, “The introduction of such a machine into use would be injurious to the interests of hand-sewers.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
The appeals court said students are free to speak on controversial matters, but they are not free to make “derogatory and injurious remarks directed at students’ minority status such as race, religion and sexual orientation.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 27, 2025
"We have engaged our legal team to initiate proceedings against the individuals or entities responsible for the unlawful and injurious forgery of documents," said a representative for Full Scope PR.
From Salon • Sep. 4, 2024
Mr. Wang’s suit accused Ms. Cutler of making “duplicitous and injurious statements.”
From New York Times • May 1, 2024
The summer food of the white-breasted nuthatch and the brown creeper, for example, includes the eggs, larvae, and adults of a very large number of insects injurious to trees.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
