prejudicial

[prej-uh-dish-uhl]

adjective

1. causing prejudice or disadvantage; detrimental.

prejudicial

/ ˌprɛdʒʊˈdɪʃəl /

adjective

1. causing prejudice; detrimental or damaging

Other Word Forms

• prejudicially adverb
• prejudicialness noun
• nonprejudicial adjective
• nonprejudicially adverb
• unprejudicial adjective
• unprejudicially adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of prejudicial¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Late Latin praejūdiciālis; prejudice, -al ¹

Example Sentences

Mr Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, and Mr Berry, were accused of gathering and providing information prejudicial to the safety and interests of the state between December 2021 and February 2023.

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They were accused of gathering and providing information prejudicial to the safety and interests of the state between December 2021 and February 2023.

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The two men were accused of gathering and providing information prejudicial to the safety and interests of the state between 28 December 2021 and 3 February 2023.

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There are very few instances of trials having ever been completely derailed by allegedly prejudicial public comment - and judges direct to juries to ignore media reports or comment outside of court.

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Tesla accused the victims' lawyers of overwhelming the jury "with a flood of highly prejudicial but irrelevant evidence" including statements from Mr Musk.

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Related Words

• biased 
• bigoted 
• counterproductive 
• damaging 
• detrimental 
• disadvantageous 
• discriminatory 
• hurtful 
• inimical 
• injurious 
• unfavorable 
• unjust 

When To Use

What does prejudicial mean?

Prejudicial means based on or causing prejudice—a bias or a preconceived opinion, idea, or belief about something.Describing actions as prejudicial often implies that the person doing them has made up their mind about something and has made generalizations about it before fully knowing about it. Though a prejudice can be positive, the word most often refers to unfair and strongly held negative judgments—especially hostile judgments about certain people.Prejudice can refer to a specific instance of such a belief, as in He clearly has a prejudice against people of color, or such beliefs collectively, as in We need to eliminate prejudice from society. Prejudice against people can be based on many parts of their identity, including race, ethnicity, religion, gender or gender identity, sexuality, and language. Such prejudicial beliefs often create stereotypes about members of such groups.Describing something as prejudicial often implies that it’s detrimental—meaning it causes harm. Most forms of discrimination are prejudicial.Another adjective form of the word prejudice is prejudiced, which is used to describe someone who has a prejudice against others.Example: This is a clear case of prejudicial treatment—email records show that she was not considered for the job solely because she is Black.