deleterious
Meanings
Adjective Satellite
- harmful to living things
- "deleterious chemical additives"
Adj
- Harmful, often in a subtle or unexpected way.
- Having lower fitness.
Origin / Etymology
Borrowed (1640s, 1582 as deletorious) from Medieval Latin deleterius, deletorius, from Ancient Greek δηλητήριος (dēlētḗrios, “noxious, deleterious”), from δηλητήρ (dēlētḗr, “a destroyer”), from δηλέομαι (dēléomai, “I hurt, damage, spoil, waste”). Not related to delete.
Synonyms
damaging, deleterious, destructive, detrimental, harmful, hurtful, inimical, injurious, mischievous, nocent, nocuous, noisome, noxious, pernicious, prejudicial, scathand, scathel, sullen, venom
Scrabble Score: 12
deleterious is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL worddeleterious is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
deleterious is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary