deleterious
/ˌdɛl.ɪˈtɪə̯.ɹi.əs/
deleterious means harmful, often in a subtle or unexpected way. It carries an Arena rating of 1433, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, deleterious ranks #925 of 17,138 for Most Incisive Words, #1,064 of 17,127 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #1,351 of 17,131 for Scariest Words, #3,221 of 17,106 for Most Storied Words.
deleterious is pronounced /ˌdɛl.ɪˈtɪə̯.ɹi.əs/.
Why “deleterious” is a great word
Causing harm, especially in a subtle, gradual, or unsuspected manner. From the Ancient Greek δηλητήριος (dēlētērios, "noxious, destructive"), from δηλητήρ (dēlētḗr, "a destroyer"), from δηλέομαι (dēléomai, "to hurt, damage"), first attested in English in the 1580s. Unlike "detrimental" (which announces its damage plainly and directly) or "pernicious" (which carries a moral stain, a sense of deliberate wickedness), deleterious is the clinician's word, the quiet note for accumulating ruin. It is the lead in the drinking water, the particular silence that follows years of small betrayals, or the way a certain light will bleach the color from a tapestry—the harm that arrives dressed as habit, as comfort, as the thing you never thought to refuse.
Etymology
Adapted borrowing (1640s; 1582 as deletorious) of New Latin dēlētērius, dēlētōrius + -ous, from Ancient Greek δηλητήριος (dēlētḗrios, “noxious, deleterious”), from δηλητήρ (dēlētḗr, “a destroyer”), from δηλέομαι (dēléomai, “I hurt, damage, spoil, waste”). Not related to delete or deleble. Doublet of deletery.
adj
- Harmful, often in a subtle or unexpected way.e.g.“deleterious effects”
- Having lower fitness.e.g.“A deleterious mutation”
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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