Damage
/ˈdæmɪdʒ/
Definitions
2 meaningsPhysical harm or injury that impairs the value, usefulness, or normal function of something.
/ˈdæmɪdʒ/
Physical harm or injury
The earthquake caused significant damage to the infrastructure.
💡 Simply: Think of it like a broken toy or a dent in your car. It's something that's been hurt or made worse.
👶 For kids: When something gets broken or hurt, that's damage!
More Examples
There was no damage to the product after the fall.
The fire caused serious damage to the building's structure.
How It's Used
"The storm caused extensive damage to the building."
"The insurance covered the damage caused by the fire."
To inflict physical harm or injury, or to impair the value or usefulness of something.
/ˈdæmɪdʒ/
To cause harm or injury
The storm damaged the roof of their house.
💡 Simply: If you break something, make it worse, or hurt it in some way, you're damaging it.
👶 For kids: To make something broken or not good anymore, like when you rip a paper that is damage.
More Examples
His careless driving damaged the other car.
Stress can damage your health over time.
How It's Used
"The flood damaged the crops."
"The lawsuit claimed the company damaged the plaintiff's reputation."
Idioms & expressions
damage control
Actions taken to limit the negative consequences of a situation.
"After the scandal broke, the company initiated damage control to protect its reputation."
to do damage
To cause harm or injury
"The strong wind did a lot of damage to the trees."
emotional damage
The harm caused to a person's feelings and mental state.
"The divorce caused her a great deal of emotional damage."
From Old French *domage*, *damage* (noun) and *damager* (verb), ultimately from Late Latin *damnum* (loss, harm).
Historically, damage was often used in legal and military contexts to describe losses or harms suffered.
Memory tip
Imagine a broken vase. The pieces are the damage.