Dictionary Definition
deleterious adj : harmful to living things;
"deleterious chemical additives" [syn: hurtful, injurious]
User Contributed Dictionary
Adjective
- harmful or hurtful, to physical, mental or
moral health.
- a deleterious chemical
-
- 1850, Nathaniel
Hawthorne, The
Scarlet Letter - Chapter XV,
- Or might it suffice him, that every wholesome growth should be converted into something deleterious and malignant at his touch?
- 1850, Nathaniel
Hawthorne, The
Scarlet Letter - Chapter XV,
Usage notes
Often used in contexts of exasperation or ironic dramatization.Synonyms
- sense harmful destructive, harmful, hurtful, injurious, noxious, pernicious
Derived terms
Extensive Definition
Deleterious may also refer to:
Synonyms, Antonyms and Related Words
baleful, baneful, corroding, corrosive, corrupting, corruptive, counterproductive,
damaging, deadly, destroying, destructive, detrimental, disadvantageous,
disserviceable,
distressing,
harmful, hurtful, injurious, lethal, malefic, malevolent, malign, malignant, mischievous, noisome, noxious, ominous, pernicious, poisonous, prejudicial, ruining, ruinous, scatheful, toxic, unadvantageous, unfavorable, unprofitable, unrewarding, useless, venenate, veneniferous, venenous, venomous, vicious, virulent, worthless