harmful Definition
harm·ful (härm′fəl)
adjective
causing or able to cause harm; hurtful
harmful Related Forms
harmful Synonyms
harmful
modif.
harmful Usage Examples
Adjective complement with noun phrase
- contain: Waste treatment plants remove some of the most poisonous wastes from sewage, but most treated sewage still contains material harmful to the ocean.
- do: Those who want to learn Gung-fu shall respect these principles and never do anything harmful to these Chinese cultural traditions.
Modifies a noun
- bacterium: Pets can pass on harmful bacteria that may be present in their feces.
- substance: May have been poisoned or exposed to a harmful substance.
- ray: They are totally safe, with no emissions, smells, noise, or harmful rays.
- micro-organism: Many times, skin problems arise because bacteria find an ideal breeding ground which our skin provides when it is covered with harmful micro-organisms.
- emission: They are also capable of reducing harmful emissions by 90 % .
- side-effect: So, in effect, it has a double action: both stimulating oxygen use for better health and reducing oxygen's harmful side-effects.
Modifying Another Word
- potentially: However, the sun's rays also can be potentially harmful.
- environmentally: CFCs are now being replaced by less environmentally harmful compounds.
- sexually: Project 19 Provides services for children and young people who display sexually harmful behavior.
- positively: A reference that was useful yesterday may be useless or positively harmful today.
- possibly: Based on these character information, a feature that will identify possibly harmful web sites for mobile platforms shall be developed.
- particularly: Too much sun is particularly harmful to very young children, who should be kept out of direct sunlight.
Used with adjective complement
- prove: Badgers, like too many children, have a very sweet tooth, which can prove very harmful for them.
- consider: None of the failures of the standards in 2001 were considered harmful to consumers ' health.
- become: But when their children reach eight or nine years old, that curiosity can become harmful for both the children and the parents.
Preposition: in
way: Nitrogen dioxide is harmful in two main ways: it can cause breathing problems and it also contributes to the problem of acid rain.
Preposition: for
child: Carbon monoxide fills the rooms which is very harmful for children 's health.
Preposition: by
inhalation: Hazards Iodine is harmful by inhalation and contact with the skin.
Browse dictionary entries near harmful
- ‹ harmed
- ‹ harmattan
- ‹ Harm to Property
- ‹ harm
- ‹ harlotry
- ‹ harlot
- ‹ harlequinade
- ‹ harlequin snake
- ‹ harlequin bug
- ‹ Harlequin

