deleterious

English

WOTD – 13 November 2007

Etymology

From Medieval Latin deleterius, kind of orange pickle) from Ancient Greek δηλητήριος (dēlētḗrios, “noxious, deleterious”), from δηλητήρ (dēlētḗr, “a destroyer”), from δηλέομαι (dēléomai, “I hurt, damage, spoil, waste”), 1640s.

Pronunciation

• (deprecated use of |lang= parameter) IPA^(key): /ˌdɛlɪˈtɪəɹi.əs/, /ˌdɪlɪˈtɪəɹi.əs/
• (deprecated use of |lang= parameter) IPA^(key): /ˌdɛləˈtɪɹi.əs/
• (deprecated use of |lang= parameter)

  Audio (US):

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  Audio (AU):

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• (deprecated use of |lang= parameter) Rhymes: -ɪəriəs

Adjective

deleterious (comparative more deleterious, superlative most deleterious)

1. Harmful often in a subtle or unexpected way.

   Synonyms: destructive, harmful, hurtful, injurious, noxious, pernicious; see also Thesaurus:harmful

   deleterious effects

   deleterious to someone's health

   • 1850, Nathaniel Hawthorne, “chapter XV”, in The Scarlet Letter:

     Or might it suffice him, that every wholesome growth should be converted into something deleterious and malignant at his touch?

   • 2017 September, Jean M. Twenge, “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:

     The advent of the smartphone and its cousin the tablet was followed quickly by hand-wringing about the deleterious effects of “screen time.” But the impact of these devices has not been fully appreciated, and goes far beyond the usual concerns about curtailed attention spans.

Derived terms

• deleteriously
• deleteriousness

Related terms

• delete
• deletion
• deletory

Translations

harmful

• Belarusian: шкоднасны (škódnasny)
• Bulgarian: вреден (bg) (vreden)
• Catalan: deleteri
• Dutch: schadelijk (nl)
• Faroese: skaðiligur
• French: délétère (fr)
• German: schädlich (de), gesundheitsschädlich (de)
• Italian: deleterio (it)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Polish: szkodliwy (pl)
• Portuguese: deletério (pt)
• Romanian: deleter (ro), vătămător (ro), nociv (ro), dăunător (ro)
• Russian: вре́дный (ru) (vrédnyj), вредоно́сный (ru) (vredonósnyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: sgriosail
• Spanish: deletéreo (es)
• Swedish: menlig (sv)

Further reading

• “deleterious”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “deleterious”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “deleterious”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.