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damage

[ dam-ij ]
/ ˈdæm ɪdʒ /
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See synonyms for: damage / damaged / damages / damaging on Thesaurus.com
noun
injury or harm that reduces value or usefulness: The storm did considerable damage to the crops.
damages, Law. the estimated money equivalent for detriment or injury sustained.
Often damages. Informal. cost; expense; charge: What are the damages for the lubrication job on my car?
verb (used with object), dam·aged, dam·ag·ing.
to cause damage to; injure or harm; reduce the value or usefulness of: He damaged the saw on a nail.
verb (used without object), dam·aged, dam·ag·ing.
to become damaged: Soft wood damages easily.

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Origin of damage

1250–1300; Middle English <Old French, equivalent to dam (<Latin damnum damage, fine) + -age-age; see damn

synonym study for damage

1. Damage, detriment, harm, mischief refer to injuries of various kinds. Damage is the kind of injury or the effect of injury that directly impairs appearance, value, usefulness, soundness, etc.: Fire causes damage to property. Detriment is a falling off from an original condition as the result of damage, depreciation, devaluation, etc.: Overeating is a detriment to health. Harm may denote either physical hurt or mental, moral, or spiritual injury: bodily harm; harm to one's self-confidence. Mischief may be damage, harm, trouble, or misfortune caused by a person, especially if maliciously: an enemy who would do one mischief.

OTHER WORDS FROM damage

Words nearby damage

Dalton's law, Dalton System, Daly, Daly City, dam, damage, damage control, damaged goods, damages, damaging, daman
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Words related to damage

accident, blow, bruise, casualty, catastrophe, contamination, corruption, destruction, deterioration, devastation, disturbance, hardship, harm, illness, impairment, pollution, suffering, wound, batter, break

How to use damage in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for damage

damage
/ (ˈdæmɪdʒ) /
noun
injury or harm impairing the function or condition of a person or thing
loss of something desirable
informal cost; expense (esp in the phrase what's the damage?)
verb
(tr) to cause damage to
(intr) to suffer damage

Derived forms of damage

Word Origin for damage

C14: from Old French, from Latin damnum injury, loss, fine
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with damage

damage
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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