harm

harm¹ S3 [ha:m US ha:rm] n [U]

[: Old English; Origin: hearm]

1.) damage, injury, or trouble caused by someone's actions or by an event

▪ Modern farming methods have done considerable harm to the countryside.

▪ Socks that are too tight can cause as much harm as badly fitting shoes.

▪ It is a parent's responsibility to ensure that their children do not suffer any harm .

▪ Criticizing people's work often does more harm than good .

▪ This won't do his career serious harm .

▪ protection from physical harm

▪ There's no great harm in taking something to relieve a headache.

▪ I'm only trying to earn a bit of money. Where's the harm in that?

▪ It was a silly thing to do, but don't worry. No harm done .

→↑grievous bodily harm

2.) come to no harm/not come to any harm

to not be hurt or damaged

▪ She was relieved to see the children had come to no harm.

3.) mean no harm/not mean any harm

to have no intention of hurting or upsetting anyone

▪ She's a terrible gossip but she means no harm.

4.) there's no harm in doing sth/it does no harm to do sth

spoken used to suggest something to someone

▪ There's no harm in trying.

▪ It does no harm to ask.

5.) it wouldn't do sb any harm to do sth

spoken used to suggest that someone should do something that may be helpful or useful to them

▪ It wouldn't do you any harm to get some experience first.

6.) out of harm's way

a) if someone or something is out of harm's way, they are in a place where they cannot be hurt or damaged

▪ Copies of your documents should be kept in a safe place, well out of harm's way.

b) if something dangerous is out of harm's way, it is in a place where it cannot hurt anyone or damage anything

▪ If you have small children, make sure that you store all medicines out of harm's way.

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COLLOCATES for sense 1

do harm (to something)/do something harm

cause (somebody/something) harm

suffer harm

do more harm than good (=cause more problems rather than improving the situation)

serious harm

physical harm

psychological/emotional harm

there is no harm in (doing) something (=used to say that something seems reasonable)

where's the harm in that? spoken (=used when you think that something seems reasonable, although other people may not)

no harm done spoken (=used to tell someone not to worry about something they have done)

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harm ²

harm² v [T]

1.) to damage something

▪ chemicals that harm the environment

2.) to physically hurt a person or animal

▪ The kidnappers didn't harm him, thank God.

3.) harm sb's image/reputation

to make people have a worse opinion of a person or group