damaging

adjective

dam·​ag·​ing ˈda-mi-jiŋ How to pronounce damaging (audio)
: causing or able to cause damage : injurious
has a damaging effect on wildlife
damagingly adverb

Examples of damaging in a Sentence

the damaging effects of the sun on your skin The storm may produce damaging winds. He says he has damaging information about the candidate. The evidence was very damaging to their case.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Potent thunderstorms across the central and eastern U.S. this week could trigger flash floods, damaging winds and possible tornadoes as California prepares for its first heat wave of the season. Christopher Cann, USA Today, 29 May 2025 Large hail and damaging winds are the primary threats, with a low (non-zero) tornado threat. Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 May 2025 The plains in southeastern Colorado can expect damaging wind gusts up to 70 mph, 2-inch hail, heavy rain and a chance for tornadoes, according to a Hazardous Weather Outlook from the weather service's Pueblo office. Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 28 May 2025 Some will get caught in the tornado’s damaging hail, some of which is the size of softballs, or worse, in the tornado funnel itself, where 150-mph-plus winds flip cars, and kill people. Jim Clash, Forbes.com, 27 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for damaging

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1828, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of damaging was circa 1828

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Cite this Entry

“Damaging.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/damaging. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

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