harmless

adjective

harm·​less ˈhärm-ləs 

1

: free from harm, liability, or loss

2

: lacking capacity or intent to injure : innocuous

a harmless joke

harmlessly adverb

harmlessness noun

Synonyms

• anodyne
• benign
• hurtless
• innocent
• innocuous
• inoffensive
• safe
• white

Examples of harmless in a Sentence

His ideas seem harmless enough.

We're just having a bit of harmless fun.

It was just a harmless joke.

Recent Examples on the Web

When To Get Help for Your Child's Teeth Grinding Most cases of tooth grinding in children are harmless and will eventually go away on their own. —Chaunie Brusie, Rn, Parents, 16 July 2024

Most, like mild hormonal fluctuations and early pregnancy, are usually harmless. —Ann Pietrangelo, Verywell Health, 16 July 2024

Burgess generally thinks the trend is harmless, as long as the programs don’t romanticize or sensationalize the killers. —Olivia B. Waxman, TIME, 11 July 2024

The other side: At least two students apologized in online videos, saying the accounts were meant as a harmless joke and got blown out of proportion. —Isaac Avilucea, Axios, 8 July 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

harmless

adjective

harm·​less ˈhärm-ləs 

1

: free from harm

2

: unable to harm

harmlessly adverb

harmlessness noun

Legal Definition

harmless

adjective

harm·​less

1

: free from harm, liability, or loss

—often used in the phrase to hold harmless see also hold harmless

2

: lacking capacity or intent to injure

harmlessly adverb

harmlessness noun