HURT Synonyms: 294 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'hurt' distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of hurt are damage , harm , impair , injure , and mar . While all these words mean "to affect injuriously," hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings. // hurt by their callous remarks

Q: When can 'damage' be used instead of 'hurt'?

Although the words damage and hurt have much in common, damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness. // a table damaged in shipping

Q: When might 'harm' be a better fit than 'hurt'?

The words harm and hurt can be used in similar contexts, but harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss. // careful not to harm the animals

Q: When could 'impair' be used to replace 'hurt'?

The words impair and hurt are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution. // years of smoking had impaired his health

Q: When would 'injure' be a good substitute for 'hurt'?

While in some cases nearly identical to hurt , injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success. // badly injured in an accident

Q: When is 'mar' a more appropriate choice than 'hurt'?

While the synonyms mar and hurt are close in meaning, mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement. // the text is marred by many typos

hurt 1 of 3

verb

ˈhərt

Definition of hurt

as in to ache

to feel or cause physical pain my head hurts a bad sprain that really hurts I hurt all over

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in to damage

to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of don't worry that you'll hurt the new lawn by walking across it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to injure

to cause bodily damage to the common belief that reading in poor light hurts your eyes

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to grieve

to feel deep sadness or mental pain I know you must be hurting from the cruel words they said

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

hurt

2 of 3

adjective

as in injured

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

hurt

3 of 3

noun

as in distress

a state of great suffering of body or mind in her hurt she said a lot of things to her boyfriend that she didn't really mean

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in harm

something that causes loss or pain a totally baseless accusation that caused lasting hurt to his reputation

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word hurt distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of hurt are damage, harm, impair, injure, and mar. While all these words mean "to affect injuriously," hurt implies inflicting a wound to the body or to the feelings.

hurt by their callous remarks

When can damage be used instead of hurt?

Although the words damage and hurt have much in common, damage suggests injury that lowers value or impairs usefulness.

a table damaged in shipping

When might harm be a better fit than hurt?

The words harm and hurt can be used in similar contexts, but harm often stresses the inflicting of pain, suffering, or loss.

careful not to harm the animals

When could impair be used to replace hurt?

The words impair and hurt are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, impair suggests a making less complete or efficient by deterioration or diminution.

years of smoking had impaired his health

When would injure be a good substitute for hurt?

While in some cases nearly identical to hurt, injure implies the inflicting of anything detrimental to one's looks, comfort, health, or success.

badly injured in an accident

When is mar a more appropriate choice than hurt?

While the synonyms mar and hurt are close in meaning, mar applies to injury that spoils perfection (as of a surface) or causes disfigurement.

the text is marred by many typos

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of hurt

Verb

Reuters said March and April reports of impending layoffs and Meta tracking employees’ keyboard and mouse input in order to train AI agents (Meta has since paused the program) hurt employee morale. — Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 26 Aug. 2026 The attacks have also served Ukraine’s war goals by unsettling Russians living far from the front line and hurting the Russian economy. — ABC News, 26 Aug. 2026

Adjective

Many of the hurt kids were at home when tear gas drifted in from streets where federal agents had deployed the chemical agent against crowds of protesters. — Lisa Song, ProPublica, 27 May 2026 Ailing with a hurt knee and foot that kept him from elevating, the graduate transfer from UAB finished with 13 points on 4-of-13 shooting. — Eddie Pells, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 Apr. 2026

Noun

This is a hurt which is still raw and, in many aspects, unresolved. — Literary Hub, 30 July 2026 The Black community is experiencing a hurt that feels all too familiar. — Melissa S. Johnson, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for hurt

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hurt

Verb

Green lasers shot out into the crowd, revealing the faces of fans who’d waited all night on aching feet to see their favorites.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
About one out of five people infected with West Nile virus develop symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, joint pain, vomiting, or rash.

— Carlos E. Castañeda, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of ache

Verb

Maiquetía International airport, outside Caracas, was damaged from twin earthquakes on June 24 that devastated the country.

— Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026
The flooding inundated areas along the Trishuli River, burying some buildings and damaging bridges and roadways.

— Jon Haworth, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of damage

Verb

Crump was flanked by three sets of grieving Black families who have all lost their sons in recent months.

— Ryan Young, CNN Money, 30 Aug. 2026
The grieving husband said Soto de Guzman wanted to take their son to Santo Domingo on the day after she was killed and had already booked a flight, but the son was in the midst of a mental health crisis.

— Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of grieve

Noun

Its movements and squeaks change in response to the person interacting with it, giving caregivers another way to reduce distress and encourage engagement.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
He was found kneeling in front of a piano and striking the keys, in apparent distress.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of distress

Noun

The federal case was based on allegations the social media giant misrepresented the extent of child mental health harms caused by apps like Facebook and Instagram.

— Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 27 Aug. 2026
The suit alleged that Meta designed Instagram with intentionally addictive features and exposed younger users to serious mental harm while misleading the public about the platform’s safety.

— Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of harm

Cite this Entry

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“Hurt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hurt. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of hurt

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