1
as in harmful
causing or capable of causing harm
the most hurtful thing you can do to this silk dress is put it in the dryer
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in painful
hard to accept or bear especially emotionally
her ex-husband said hurtful things that she could never forgive
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of hurtful
In this vein, Annie has made deeply hurtful and entirely untrue claims about our family, and especially Sam.
—
Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
In The Art of the Deal, Trump talks about publicity:
The funny thing is that even a critical story, which may be hurtful personally, can be very valuable to your business.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 8 Jan. 2025
While hurtful and untrue, his comments are unfortunately not an uncommon opinion of Baltimore City — many people believe the city is a mess beyond repair.
—Zoe Hiller, Baltimore Sun, 4 Jan. 2025
Alongside the deeply hurtful acts of infidelity, abusive behavior and a lack of personal effort to keep the spark alive, there were three actions that stood out as most harmful to a relationship.
—Mark Travers, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for hurtful 
Tommy Tuberville, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
In The Art of the Deal, Trump talks about publicity:
The funny thing is that even a critical story, which may be hurtful personally, can be very valuable to your business.
—Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 8 Jan. 2025
While hurtful and untrue, his comments are unfortunately not an uncommon opinion of Baltimore City — many people believe the city is a mess beyond repair.
—Zoe Hiller, Baltimore Sun, 4 Jan. 2025
Alongside the deeply hurtful acts of infidelity, abusive behavior and a lack of personal effort to keep the spark alive, there were three actions that stood out as most harmful to a relationship.
—Mark Travers, Forbes, 22 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for hurtful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hurtful
Adjective
-
Market intervention is always and everywhere harmful simply because markets are people.—
John Tamny,
Forbes,
19 Jan. 2025
-
In an October 2022 article in the Montreal Gazette, Bryn Austin, a professor at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, highlighted how BMI can lead to harmful outcomes.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
19 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The Spanish government is moving to rein in real estate purchases by foreigners and curb the spread of short-term rentals, part of a series of measures that officials say are necessary to alleviate a painful housing crunch that has rapidly become one of the worst in Europe.—
Liz Alderman,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2025
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Trump also makes clear his intent to apply painful public and government pressure on private-sector DEI practices as well, and does not cloak his reasons.—
The Editors,
National Review,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Such responses hinder the efficacy of gene editing treatments and could also be detrimental, eliminating the cells targeted for modification.—
William A. Haseltine,
Forbes,
24 Jan. 2025
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But at his worst, these game-breaking qualities can be detrimental.—
Elias Burke,
The Athletic,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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And having more thoughtful conversations doesn’t preclude the need sometimes to confront those who are needlessly cruel or organizations that benefit from such exploitation.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
18 Jan. 2025
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In recent months, the Justice Department and the state filed thousands of pages of new records in the lawsuit, including reports and sworn statements from pediatricians, scholars and others who describe Florida’s policies as archaic and cruel.—
Carol Marbin Miller,
Miami Herald,
17 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Mother Nature exploded in Los Angeles this month with the most damaging wildfires in the city’s, and likely the nation’s, history.—
Carmen Balber,
Rolling Stone,
17 Jan. 2025
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The deficit hawks said the package must be paid for by other changes to the budget — a stipulation that infuriated Republicans from New York and New Jersey, where the storm was most damaging, and triggered an internal fight within the GOP that benefited Democrats politically.—
Mike Lillis,
The Hill,
16 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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So, if the Dodgers transition from the team that was unable to win it in a 162-game regular season to a dynasty similar to the Yankees dynasty, then the complaints of harsher regulations against the Dodgers may be warranted.—
Tyler Small,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
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Avoid harsh or irritating products such as hydroxy acids (AHAs and BHAs) or retinoids.—
Anna Giorgi,
Verywell Health,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Hart is suing her former employer, Extended Stay America, alleging that the company didn’t provide training or the most basic safety measures to handle dangerous and sometimes life-threatening work conditions.—
Cathie Anderson,
Sacramento Bee,
24 Jan. 2025
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The agency issued a red warning, its highest-level alert indicating dangerous weather, for Northern Ireland and parts of Scotland, before downgrading it Friday afternoon.—
Claire Moses,
New York Times,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But the measure also raised concern among state environmental groups about potential adverse effects on ecosystems and vulnerable species.—
David Lightman,
Sacramento Bee,
24 Jan. 2025
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The addition of seaweed improved beef cattle growth rates with no adverse health effects.—
Heide Brandes,
thehustle.co,
24 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near hurtful
Cite this Entry
“Hurtful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hurtful. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
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