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 of harmless

• benign
• safe
• innocent
• innocuous
• inoffensive
• healthy

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

For years, American policymakers treated Huawei and ZTE routers as cheap, harmless hardware. —Noosheen Hashemi, Time, 26 Jan. 2026

What is different is the scale, the opacity and the fact that AI can turn yesterday’s seemingly harmless data into something far more revealing tomorrow. —Tony Bradley, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026

Most people want to know how to keep bed bugs away from their homes because, unlike more harmless bugs crawling around the house, a bed bug infestation is a massive ordeal. —Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 23 Jan. 2026

Despite their nickname, springtails are harmless to humans, do not bite, and are a different species from fleas. —Marina Johnson, Louisville Courier Journal, 22 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

13th 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