There are so many intelligent ways to convey the harmful aspects of life. Here are five words to boost your vocabulary the next time you need to describe the hurtful.
Daniel MacDougall
Here is a list of our top five words to describe harm.
Pernicious:
Harmful in a gradual and subtle way. A great descriptive word to have in your vocabulary toolbox. Use this word to describe the slow, hurtful aspects of your subject. Remember, slow and harmful.
“This pernicious weather is ruining my mental state.”
”The drink had a pernicious aftertaste as she took the last sip.”
Deleterious:
If something is blatantly injurious and harmful to your health, it’s deleterious. Drinking poison is obviously bad for your health, so consuming poison is deleterious to the body.
“Drinking six cans of pop a day will have some deleterious effects down the road.”
”He tipped back the deleterious liquid in the vile and began to choke.”
Nocent:
Harmful and injurious can be labelled nocent. Another uncommon word to throw around when describing something that is harmful to health. Much like the deleterious, the cause is known to be harmful.
“The green nocent fumes wafted in his face.”
”The meat had a nocent taste as soon as it hit his mouth.”
Nocuous:
Unlike deleterious and nocent, use the nocuous to describe something that is likely to cause damage or harm. You're not 100% sure the liquid is poisonous, but it probably is. Use nocuous as a clever method of description.
“You see that nocuous haze coming from the gas plant? Doesn’t look good.”
”That’s a nocuous old burrito on the table. I’m not eating that.”
Malignant:
Very dangerous showing to cause harm and effect. You’ve might have come across the word malignant before in medical diagnosis, but it can describe something that will bring about great harm. Use the word to evoke terror and harm in your description.
"The malignant dark growth scaled up the man's arm."
"His attitude is like a malignant disease in the office every time he speaks."
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Author's note: none of the writing was generated or made by AI. Our mission is provide a human touch to our journeys together. Thankyou always, Daniel MacDougall…