as in damages
something that causes loss or pain
you were lucky to survive the fire without harm no harm in trying
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in injures
to cause bodily damage to
though she wasn't harmed by the flying glass, she slipped and fell on a piece and cut her hand
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in hurts
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
the company's reputation has been harmed by allegations of crooked accounting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of harms
Madeline Holcombe, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025
OpenAI’s launch of its pioneering ChatGPT sparked a global AI craze that has drawn hundreds of billions of dollars in investments into Silicon Valley technology companies, and raised alarms that the technology will lead to harms ranging from rampant unemployment to terrorism.
—Ethan Baron, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025
Yet politicians often effectively leverage fears to garner votes, and companies routinely market unnecessary products that promise protection from imagined or exaggerated harms.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
Artificial intelligence is billed by its profiteers as a new frontier for technology and humanity, but generative AI often perpetuates existing social harms.
—Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2025
If companies had studied these drugs in pregnant women, some of those harms might have been avoided.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 23 Oct. 2025
As prosecutors focus on social-media harms from the last decade, tech companies are moving forward with new advancements in artificial intelligence.
—Charlotte Alter, Time, 22 Oct. 2025
Last January, CEOs, including Zuckerberg, testified at a Senate hearing on ways to protect children from the harms of social media.
—Samantha Subin, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025
The changes come as the social media giant faces ongoing criticism over harms to children from its platforms.
—Boston Herald Wire Services, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2025
The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians and environmental advocacy group the Friends of the Everglades filed an early lawsuit that resulted in halting the construction of Alligator Alcatraz, arguing that the facility harms the fragile ecosystem of the Everglades.
—Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
Extra-intestinal symptoms like fatigue, headache and muscle pain are common, but there’s still no evidence that gluten directly harms the nervous system in these cases.
—New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2025
Further, fear harms communities and society by corroding social trust and civic engagement.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
God never sanctions cruelty; love that harms is not love at all.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
In many other contexts, reproductive rights are understood as a collective good that benefits all society – or, conversely, harms all society when revoked.
—Seda Saluk, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2025
Lead poisoning, all but eradicated in the West, still harms millions of children in the developing world, with lead-acid battery recycling a key culprit.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2025
The team also found that such cells worked best when manufactured at 842°F (450 °C), which prevented gold atoms from diffusing (a common issue that harms performance).
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2025
Noun
For children, the concern is particularly great because their smaller bodies and metabolisms put them at a greater vulnerability for harms caused by exposure, according to the FDA.
—Madeline Holcombe, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025
OpenAI’s launch of its pioneering ChatGPT sparked a global AI craze that has drawn hundreds of billions of dollars in investments into Silicon Valley technology companies, and raised alarms that the technology will lead to harms ranging from rampant unemployment to terrorism.
—Ethan Baron, Mercury News, 24 Oct. 2025
Yet politicians often effectively leverage fears to garner votes, and companies routinely market unnecessary products that promise protection from imagined or exaggerated harms.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
Artificial intelligence is billed by its profiteers as a new frontier for technology and humanity, but generative AI often perpetuates existing social harms.
—Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2025
If companies had studied these drugs in pregnant women, some of those harms might have been avoided.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 23 Oct. 2025
As prosecutors focus on social-media harms from the last decade, tech companies are moving forward with new advancements in artificial intelligence.
—Charlotte Alter, Time, 22 Oct. 2025
Last January, CEOs, including Zuckerberg, testified at a Senate hearing on ways to protect children from the harms of social media.
—Samantha Subin, CNBC, 21 Oct. 2025
The changes come as the social media giant faces ongoing criticism over harms to children from its platforms.
—Boston Herald Wire Services, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Verb
Removing leaves not only harms your local ecosystem, but leaf blowers and other power equipment also produce extra carbon emissions.
—Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2025
The Miccosukee Tribe of Indians and environmental advocacy group the Friends of the Everglades filed an early lawsuit that resulted in halting the construction of Alligator Alcatraz, arguing that the facility harms the fragile ecosystem of the Everglades.
—Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
Extra-intestinal symptoms like fatigue, headache and muscle pain are common, but there’s still no evidence that gluten directly harms the nervous system in these cases.
—New Atlas, 24 Oct. 2025
Further, fear harms communities and society by corroding social trust and civic engagement.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 24 Oct. 2025
God never sanctions cruelty; love that harms is not love at all.
—Ed Gaskin, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
In many other contexts, reproductive rights are understood as a collective good that benefits all society – or, conversely, harms all society when revoked.
—Seda Saluk, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2025
Lead poisoning, all but eradicated in the West, still harms millions of children in the developing world, with lead-acid battery recycling a key culprit.
—Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 14 Oct. 2025
The team also found that such cells worked best when manufactured at 842°F (450 °C), which prevented gold atoms from diffusing (a common issue that harms performance).
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 5 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for harms
Noun
-
Smith said that the initial goal is to get the tool up and running and then focus on expanding the work by not only looking at events that cost over $1 billion in damages but also smaller and medium-sized events.—
Ignacio Calderon,
USA Today,
22 Oct. 2025
-
The Billion-Dollar Database tracks the financial costs of property and other infrastructure destroyed by extreme weather disasters in the United States, focusing on events that caused $1 billion or more in damages.—
Andrew Freedman,
CNN Money,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Derek gravely injures his hand.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Gafford injures ankle The Mavericks are likely to be without one of their major frontcourt pieces this preseason.—
Christian Clark,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
However, both Sheth and Mehta said supplemental screening for women with breast implants never hurts.—
Helen Carefoot,
Flow Space,
28 Oct. 2025
-
There’s a lot of optimism and spontaneity surrounding this zodiac sign, so even conversations that leave you laughing until your stomach hurts wouldn’t be out of the ordinary.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Despite lifesaving measures, the man died from his injuries, according to Adger.—
Julie Mendes,
AZCentral.com,
23 Oct. 2025
-
Alvarez, who excelled after returning from the minors, also showed his toughness while playing through injuries to both of his hands down the stretch.—
Drew VonScio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Even with all of them in place, Shirley misses the masked attacker sneaking his way up to the apartment door, and Lamb’s attempt to blind him with bleach creates a chaotic struggle that wounds the assailant without containing him.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Set against Mumbai’s relentless pulse, their delicate connection faces tests as personal histories, desires, and wounds resurface.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Deadly holiday weekend mars broad crime drop The back-and-forth followed a Labor Day weekend of deadly violence in Chicago worse than in the previous two years, with seven people shot to death, according to preliminary Chicago Police Department reports.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Valuing a project at cost of production rather than value in an arm’s length sale—common in all economic statistics—especially mars Chinese data.—
Bill Conerly,
Forbes.com,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The rising intolerance that results erodes social cohesion, undermines support for democratic norms and weakens trust in institutions.—
Andrew Rojecki,
The Conversation,
21 Oct. 2025
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Blocking them causes disruption to the cells’ energy-generating mitochondria and leads to oxidative stress, which further weakens cancer.—
Hannah Millington,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Second, this ambiguity around responsibility cripples an organization’s ability to respond effectively.—
Nelson Lim,
Fortune,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Drones allow aggressors to target critical infrastructure that cripples a defender’s economy at low cost and with high accuracy.—
Omar Al-Ubaydli,
semafor.com,
8 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Harms.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/harms. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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