injury

noun

ˈin-j(ə-)rē How to pronounce injury (audio)
Definition of injurynext
1
as in harm
something that causes loss or pain the harsh words were the worst injury that his father could inflict

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in injustice
unfair or inadequate treatment of someone or something or an instance of this the state did the rancher an injury when it destroyed his herd of cattle without adequate proof that it was diseased

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun injury contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of injury are grievance, injustice, and wrong. While all these words mean "an act that inflicts undeserved hurt," injury applies in law specifically to an injustice for which one may sue to recover compensation.

libel constitutes a legal injury

When could grievance be used to replace injury?

The synonyms grievance and injury are sometimes interchangeable, but grievance applies to a circumstance or condition that constitutes an injustice to the sufferer and gives just ground for complaint.

a list of employee grievances

When is it sensible to use injustice instead of injury?

In some situations, the words injustice and injury are roughly equivalent. However, injustice applies to any act that involves unfairness to another or violation of one's rights.

the injustices suffered by the lower classes

In what contexts can wrong take the place of injury?

While in some cases nearly identical to injury, wrong applies also in law to any act punishable according to the criminal code; it may apply more generally to any flagrant injustice.

determined to right society's wrongs

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of injury The Mets also need RHP Kodai Senga to step to the front after injuries limited him to just one start last year. — Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025 Officials with the Port Authority confirmed to Fox News Digital that there were no injuries or impact on airport operations. — Stepheny Price, Fox News, 18 Mar. 2025 Might an injury to Crane’s most expensive free-agent addition accelerate that timeline? — Chandler Rome, The Athletic, 7 Mar. 2025 Her roommate called 911, and emergency responders found Zhuang suffering from multiple upper-body injuries, officials said. — Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for injury
Recent Examples of Synonyms for injury
  1. harm
  2. injustice
  3. damage
  4. wrong
  5. insult
Noun
  • Many people can gamble or play games of chance without harm.
    — Simone Jasper, Charlotte Observer, 17 Mar. 2025
  • In a separate writeup, researchers at security firm Wiz said preliminary analysis of the attack has already established that dozens of tj-actions users have faced real harm in the supply-chain attack.
    — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of harm
Noun
  • For instance, exploring resources that discuss reproductive injustice, economic inequality and ongoing discrimination can deepen understanding.
    — William Lambers, Newsweek, 7 Mar. 2025
  • The whole movie is about the ways that cruelty and injustice become codified.
    — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2025
Definition of injustice
Noun
  • But the real damage has hit the Yankees pitching staff, which came into Sunday down two of the team's top three rotation starters.
    — Mark Davis, Newsweek, 17 Mar. 2025
  • The ban aims to protect the historic buildings from damage caused by pigeon droppings.
    — Rebecca Ann Hughes, Forbes, 16 Mar. 2025
Definition of damage
Noun
  • The memorial finally rights a historical wrong, says the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, the British organization that built it.
    — Troy Aidan Sambajon, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 Mar. 2025
  • Thousands of users were reportedly impacted and unable to access the app, while some users said the date showed up wrong on their feed.
    — Miranda Nazzaro, The Hill, 10 Mar. 2025
Definition of wrong
Noun
  • The previous time Lilian had seen Imelda, who was sitting next to her in London, was ten years earlier, when her children were alive, but with some people mindless small talk would be an insult.
    — Yiyun Li, The New Yorker, 9 Mar. 2025
  • That’s because Trump’s approach isn’t just an insult to Zelensky but to Ukraine itself and its institution of national leadership.
    — Illia Ponomarenko, TIME, 6 Mar. 2025
Definition of insult

Browse Nearby Words

injury
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Injury.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/injury. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

More from Merriam-Webster on injury

Nglish: Translation of injury for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about injury

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

More Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

What do SCOTUS, POTUS, and FLOTUS mean?

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All