Synonym Chooser

How is the word deleterious different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of deleterious are baneful, detrimental, noxious, and pernicious. While all these words mean "exceedingly harmful," deleterious applies to what has an often unsuspected harmful effect.

a diet found to have deleterious effects

When is baneful a more appropriate choice than deleterious?

The synonyms baneful and deleterious are sometimes interchangeable, but baneful implies injury through poisoning or destroying.

the baneful notion that discipline destroys creativity

When would detrimental be a good substitute for deleterious?

The words detrimental and deleterious are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, detrimental implies obvious harmfulness to something specified.

the detrimental effects of excessive drinking

When can noxious be used instead of deleterious?

The meanings of noxious and deleterious largely overlap; however, noxious applies to what is both offensive and injurious to the health of a body or mind.

noxious chemical fumes

Where would pernicious be a reasonable alternative to deleterious?

The words pernicious and deleterious can be used in similar contexts, but pernicious implies irreparable harm done through evil or insidious corrupting or undermining.

the claim that pornography has a pernicious effect on society

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of deleterious While deleterious when recurring over the course of a lifetime, dilly-dallying can kill even quicker on a basketball court. Ben Travers, IndieWire, 27 Feb. 2025 So a lot of the decisions that are being made, which are motivated by good reasons, are having very deleterious effects on peoples' lives. Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 7 Feb. 2025 Anxious attachment is one of four attachment styles, and unfortunately is one that can have the most deleterious impact on your child’s life if unaddressed. Taylor Grothe, Parents, 10 Dec. 2024 This helps ensure that customer trust isn’t eroded by the deleterious impact of misinformation disseminated by illegitimate word of mouth. Branden Abushanab, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for deleterious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deleterious
Adjective
  • Make sure to not add dyes or sweeteners, which can be harmful to hummingbirds.
    Claire Hoppe Norgaard, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Apr. 2025
  • Our biochemical response to that type of stress is to release cortisol which eventually leads to the harmful downstream effects on our bodies, such as high blood pressure.
    Andrea Kane, CNN Money, 1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The Institute for the Study of War said Friday that Russian strikes on Ukraine's civilian infrastructure under the cover of the ceasefire on energy strikes were detrimental to establishing peace.
    John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Apr. 2025
  • Data shows how detrimental bad habits can be relative to the buy-and-hold investor.
    Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 5 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • The foreign material could pose serious adverse health consequences, leading the FSIS to consider the recall a Class I—the agency's highest level of alert.
    Abigail Wilt, Southern Living, 7 Apr. 2025
  • And while the metal is usually excreted from the body, and most people experience no adverse side effects, previous research has shown some gadolinium particles have been left behind.
    John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • But in recent years, lung disease for miners has become a major concern again, Laney says, because coal increasingly comes from mines embedded in sandstone, and which generates dust that's 20 times more damaging to lungs than coal.
    Yuki Noguchi, NPR, 9 Apr. 2025
  • The storms are threatening large hail and damaging wind gusts up to 60 mph.
    Raja Krishnamoorthi, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
  • As the medical profession came to consider cocaine and morphine as equally dangerous, coca became associated with opium, and the public was led to believe that the ruinous effects of habitual opium use would inevitably befall those who regularly chewed coca leaves.
    Wade Davis, Rolling Stone, 6 Apr. 2025
  • That means the garden isn't dangerous for Cummings' elderly father, who is allergic to bees.
    Martha Ann Overland, NPR, 6 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Deleterious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deleterious. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.

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