How to Use harmful in a Sentence

harmful

adjective
  • DDT has been proven to be extremely harmful to the environment.
  • Most of the time, these changes are harmful to the virus or have no effect.
    — Brenda Goodman, CNN, 8 Feb. 2025
  • If their viewpoint is not harmful, do your best to live and let live.
    — Tarot Astrologers, Chicago Tribune, 14 Apr. 2023
  • That’s not right, and this lawsuit seeks to stop this harmful merger.
    — Alexander Coolidge, The Enquirer, 15 Jan. 2024
  • That's not right, and this lawsuit seeks to stop this harmful merger.
    — Kate Gibson, CBS News, 15 Jan. 2024
  • What’s wrong with the recent attention to the idea that AI can be harmful?
    — Jennifer Conrad, WIRED, 21 Dec. 2022
  • Some of these supplements may even be harmful to your health.
    — Dallas News, 23 Dec. 2022
  • That doesn’t mean the virus’s growth isn’t harmful, however.
    — Chloe Taylor, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2023
  • Researchers may have found that the tartaric acid in grapes and raisins is the substance which is harmful to dogs.
    — Justin Gest, Newsweek, 10 Feb. 2025
  • Here's what to know about the chemical and its harmful health effects.
    — Grace Tucker, The Enquirer, 24 Sep. 2024
  • The hope is the breakthrough will pave the way for other vaccines to control all sorts of harmful viruses and pests.
    — Ben Tracy, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2023
  • Some microbes are helpful to the body, while others can be harmful.
    — Andrea Michelson, Verywell Health, 29 Aug. 2023
  • Often, a small glass of milk or bowl of yogurt is enough to protect your belly from the harmful effects of the medicine.
    — Avery Hurt, Discover Magazine, 10 Jan. 2024
  • This can expose the brain to chemicals and proteins that are harmful to it – compounds that are safe in the blood but toxic to the brain.
    — Rachael Seidler, Discover Magazine, 22 Sep. 2023
  • The unique design and structure make this wire creation sturdy — and sometimes harmful to the touch.
    — Brittany Kasko, Fox News, 24 Nov. 2023
  • The feature will ensure that your ears are not exposed to loud noises that can be harmful.
    — Chris Smith, BGR, 30 Sep. 2022
  • For 23 of the bars, consuming just an ounce a day would put an adult over a level for at least one of the metals that could be harmful, CR said.
    — Kate Gibson, CBS News, 30 Dec. 2022
  • The hat can be folded into your bag without losing its shape and the wide brim can protect you from the sun's harmful rays.
    — Kristin Braswell, Travel + Leisure, 25 Sep. 2024
  • The court further found that the statements in question were harmful to Pettit's defense.
    — Stephanie Slifer, CBS News, 26 Oct. 2022
  • Be sure to move any harmful cleaners and household chemicals out of the reach of children.
    — Leada Gore | Lgore@al.com, al, 19 Dec. 2022
  • There are many Amanita species, many of which are not harmful, but all the lethal ones are classified in the section Phalloideae.
    — Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 13 Oct. 2022
  • Within the edit timeframe, the author could change the sentiment of the tweet to something more harmful.
    — Moises Mendez Ii, Time, 1 Sep. 2022
  • But according to Michel’s new lawyers, Kenner’s use of the program was harmful, not helpful, to his client’s case.
    — Bill Donahue, Billboard, 17 Oct. 2023
  • That doesn’t mean that there won’t be serious consequences to AI, some of them harmful.
    — Evan Ackerman, IEEE Spectrum, 20 July 2023
  • Reviewers are big fans of the stretchy, soft fabric, which also protects your skin from the sun’s harmful UV rays.
    — Kristin Canning, SELF, 2 July 2024
  • Pathogens present in the soil — harmful bacteria, fungi, etc.
    — Nan Sterman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2023
  • This is much more harmful than protests on ivy league campuses, but this is allowed to run rampant?
    — Will Oremus, Washington Post, 14 Dec. 2023
  • The bacteria spores are harmful to many types of caterpillars.
    — Chris McKeown, The Enquirer, 4 Feb. 2023
  • Too much screen time can be harmful for teens and parents don't want their children to encounter unhealthy or dangerous content.
    — Brittney Melton, NPR, 18 Mar. 2025
  • Malicious actors on the same network can take advantage of security flaws on your device to install harmful software.
    — Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 18 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'harmful.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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