SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
pernicious
adjective
Seriously harmful, especially in a gradual or less obvious way.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Seriously harmful
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topPernicious is stronger than harmful and can imply damage developing gradually or unobtrusively.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See pernicious in use
Persistent rumors had a pernicious effect on trust within the group.
A rumor about hidden judging rules began to engender suspicion among members of a photography club. An organizer's sarcastic reply threatened to exacerbate the disagreement instead of answering it. The repeated claim had a pernicious effect on cooperation: members stopped sharing equipment because they no longer trusted one another.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license