as in harmful
causing or capable of causing harm
the incredibly baneful effect that drug addiction has on so many communities
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of baneful
The baneful effects of war on public speech and freedoms in Russia have been well recorded.
—
Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Dec. 2022
The impact these soldiers had on the South was baneful.
—New York Times, 14 Feb. 2022
We are mired in a baneful pandemic unlike anything endured for a century, parsing our lives into 14-day increments of health and survival — or not.
—Peter M. Leschak, Star Tribune, 31 July 2020
To home in on what gives these peculiar primates their baneful bite, Fry and his colleagues collected the underarm secretions from a handful of wild slow lorises housed at a research station in Indonesia and isolated the proteins within.
—Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Feb. 2020
This resulted in all the baneful consequences of the French Revolution, which Edmund Burke so brilliantly exposed in his Reflections on the Revolution in France.
—Jaithirth Rao, Quartz India, 4 Nov. 2019
Chaos convincingly ebbs and flows in this rattling film, a baneful tide lapping at some of history’s most troubled shores.
—Richard Lawson, HWD, 20 July 2017
Chaos convincingly ebbs and flows in this rattling film, a baneful tide lapping at some of history’s most troubled shores.
—Richard Lawson, vanityfair.com, 20 July 2017
Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 19 Dec. 2022
The impact these soldiers had on the South was baneful.
—New York Times, 14 Feb. 2022
We are mired in a baneful pandemic unlike anything endured for a century, parsing our lives into 14-day increments of health and survival — or not.
—Peter M. Leschak, Star Tribune, 31 July 2020
To home in on what gives these peculiar primates their baneful bite, Fry and his colleagues collected the underarm secretions from a handful of wild slow lorises housed at a research station in Indonesia and isolated the proteins within.
—Katherine J. Wu, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 Feb. 2020
This resulted in all the baneful consequences of the French Revolution, which Edmund Burke so brilliantly exposed in his Reflections on the Revolution in France.
—Jaithirth Rao, Quartz India, 4 Nov. 2019
Chaos convincingly ebbs and flows in this rattling film, a baneful tide lapping at some of history’s most troubled shores.
—Richard Lawson, HWD, 20 July 2017
Chaos convincingly ebbs and flows in this rattling film, a baneful tide lapping at some of history’s most troubled shores.
—Richard Lawson, vanityfair.com, 20 July 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for baneful
Adjective
-
Ultimately, however, Kato said, the goal should not be to replace one plastic bead with a less harmful one.—
TRAVIS LOLLER,
Arkansas Online,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Keep an eye out for any legitimate potential problems, especially those involving money, but there’s no need to assume harmful intentions.—
Tarot.com,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
There are various pieces of gear designed for skiing in adverse avalanche conditions, Antibus said.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Just under 6% of the 3,770 cases the board closed in 2024 resulted in adverse public action, according to the board’s annual report.—
Amber Gaudet
Updated February 20,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Doris Roberts, the owner and principal designer at Doris Roberts Interiors, explains how excess moisture can be detrimental to carpeting, which absorbs it like a sponge.—
Marisa Suzanne Martin,
The Spruce,
16 Feb. 2026
-
But the pressure to upgrade skills and learn the difficult jumps on joints that are still growing can be detrimental for athletes.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
As Son combined with Denis Bouanga – MLS’ most dangerous attacker three years running – the club counted 19 of its last 22 regular-season goals (plus four of six in the postseason) thanks to them.—
Josh Gross,
Daily News,
17 Feb. 2026
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Ten manufacturers of ultraprocessed foods are also facing a lawsuit, filed in December by San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu, that alleges companies knowingly engineered and marketed addictive, dangerous products while hiding the risks and causing a public health crisis.—
Sarah Koch,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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But his man-of-the-people image has suffered some serious blows over the past year, and a corruption scandal has proved particularly damaging to a president elected on a promise to clean up politics.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
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But separating them from one another is difficult and often environmentally damaging.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The dragon is said to scare away bad spirits and bring good luck.—
Staff report,
Daily News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets The company revealed that the weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets in poor visibility situations caused by darkness, bad weather, smoke or dust kicked up by helicopters.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Baneful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/baneful. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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