damageverb
American /ˈdæm.ɪdʒ/ British /ˈdæm.ɪdʒ/ The stress is on the first part: DAM-ij. The ending sounds like the end of village, not like the word age.
third-person singular damages past tense damaged past participle damaged present participle damaging
harm a thingharm something so that it is broken, does not work well, or looks worse
transitive [T] verb + object [V + obj]
- The storm damaged the roof of the school. V + obj
- Too much sun can damage your skin. V + obj
- The car was badly damaged in the accident. V + obj (passive)
Collocations
Synonyms harm
bad effecthave a bad effect on something such as someone's health, a relationship, or what people think of someone
transitive [T] verb + object [V + obj]
- The argument damaged their friendship. V + obj
- Smoking damages your health. V + obj
- The story in the newspaper damaged her reputation. V + obj
Collocations
Word family
- damage
- damaging
Choosing between damage · injure · hurt · harm
Damage is used for objects and for things such as health or a reputation: The car was damaged. When a person or an animal is hurt in the body, use injure or hurt: The driver was injured. Hurt is also everyday for pain and feelings: My back hurts. Harm is more general and can be used for people or things: The chemicals may harm fish.