MEANING
Causing harm, damage, or disadvantage, especially by affecting health, progress, or welfare.
Use it for
Describe a circumstance that quietly undermines health, progress, or well-being.State the adverse effect of a condition, decision, or environment.
Words that belong together
- detrimental to health
- detrimental effect
- detrimental impact
- prove detrimental
On the page
Years of sleep loss proved detrimental to the engineer’s concentration.
Nearby words
Opposite meanings
Word forms
- Base
- detrimental
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Usage notes
Commonly followed by to; formal and evaluative, it describes a harmful effect rather than a harmful intention.
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