hurtful

adjective

ˈhərt-fəl How to pronounce hurtful (audio)
Definition of hurtfulnext
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

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hurtful But the most heartbreaking scenes are of Bonnie, who is distraught and tearful after receiving hurtful messages online. — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 18 June 2026 Although Sarah reportedly intended references such as borrowing Diana's shoes to be humorous, royal commentators said Diana found the passage deeply hurtful. — Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026 That's just hurtful and not honest. — Sean Mandell, PEOPLE, 8 June 2026 That kind of feedback is harmful, hurtful and no substance for what needs to change. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 5 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for hurtful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hurtful
  1. harmful
  2. painful
  3. detrimental
  4. cruel
  5. damaging
  6. harsh
  7. dangerous
  8. adverse
Adjective
  • Child development experts have noted teenagers are more susceptible to social comparison than adults, so products that reward popularity can be more harmful to their mental health.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Beneficial bacteria also provide colonization resistance, competing with harmful microbes for nutrients and attachment sites while producing substances that inhibit their growth.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of harmful
Adjective
  • Every defendant has the right to appeal, and our thoughts and prayers remain with the Metcalf family in the painful wake of last week's hearing.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • The 55-year-old previously missed several weeks of the talk show amid recovery from painful gum surgery.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of painful
Adjective
  • New redistricting maps There’s also the detrimental effects for Democrats of recent redistricting in Florida.
    — Joshua Ceballos, Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026
  • The math curriculum, in my view, has been detrimental to many students.
    — Olivia Young, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of detrimental
Adjective
  • Success can feel like a cruel tease, fleetingly unattainable and yet when finally achieved, too dangerous to enjoy too long.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Aug. 2026
  • If Russia behaved badly, that was the fault of its primitive and cruel Asian side, a notion that conveniently created the fiction that Western countries are not capable of similar cruelty.
    — Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • The greatest risk from the storms will be from damaging winds and heavy downpours.
    — Rachael Jay, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Although both helped mitigate the effects of the gas, urine offered some degree of chemical protection because its ammonia partially neutralized the chlorine, reducing the gas’s damaging and potentially lethal effects on the lungs.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of damaging
Adjective
  • It has been said that the Moon is a harsh mistress, and nowhere is this more apparent than at the lunar south pole.
    — Space.com Staff, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Maybe, then, Bohm is a lesson for even the harshest skeptics.
    — Matt Gelb, New York Times, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of harsh
Adjective
  • The desert’s location on the southern border has led to many migrants attempting to cross it by using dangerous backcountry routes, the experts said.
    — Emma Tucker, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Rather, this is a dangerous, shape-shifting synthetic entity that ravaged their entire planet.
    — Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of dangerous
Adjective
  • Then England attracted adverse attention for openly drinking in the Queensland resort of Noosa when 2-0 down in a one-sided Ashes series in Australia.
    — Paul Newman, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Women with high occupational heat exposure were roughly twice as likely to suffer a miscarriage or stillbirth as those working in cooler conditions, and faced elevated risks of adverse birth outcomes overall.
    — Catarina Rolfsdotter-Jansson, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2026
Definition of adverse

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hurt (for)
hurtful
hurtfully
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Cite this Entry

“Hurtful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hurtful. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of hurtful for Spanish Speakers

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