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- Dictionarypernicious/pəˈnɪʃəs/
adjective
- 1. having a harmful effect, especially in a gradual or subtle way: "the pernicious influences of the mass media"
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adjective. us / pərˈnɪʃ·əs / Add to word list. having a very harmful effect or influence: The book focuses on the pernicious effects of slavery. (Definition of pernicious from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press) Examples of pernicious. pernicious.
The meaning of PERNICIOUS is highly injurious or destructive : deadly. How to use pernicious in a sentence. insidious, sinister, or pernicious? Synonym Discussion of Pernicious.
Pernicious definition: causing insidious harm or ruin; ruinous; injurious; hurtful. See examples of PERNICIOUS used in a sentence.
Pernicious means harmful and subtle, such as a poison gas that causes illness in those exposed to it over the course of years.
having a very harmful effect or influence: The cuts in government funding have had a pernicious effect on local health services. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases. Dangerous and harmful. adverse conditions. adverse effect. adverse publicity. adverse reaction. deleteriously. destabilizing. destructively. destructiveness. impact statement.
1. causing great injury, destruction, or ruin; fatal; deadly. 2. Rare.
Definition of pernicious adjective in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more.
1. Tending to cause death or serious injury; deadly: a pernicious virus. 2. Causing great harm; destructive: pernicious rumors. [Middle English, from Old French pernicios, from Latin perniciōsus, from perniciēs, destruction : per-, per- + nex, nec-, violent death; see nek- in Indo-European roots .] per·ni′cious·ly adv. per·ni′cious·ness n.
PERNICIOUS definition: very harmful. Learn more.
What does the adjective pernicious mean? There are three meanings listed in OED's entry for the adjective pernicious. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence. See meaning & use. How common is the adjective pernicious? About 2 occurrences per million words in modern written English. See frequency.