as in disastrous
bringing about ruin or misfortune
a damning flaw in the program cost the company millions of dollars
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in cursing
to use profane or obscene language at or about
damned the car for once again breaking down
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in denouncing
to declare to be morally wrong or evil
a heresy that was quickly damned by a hastily called church council
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in sentencing
to impose a judicial punishment on
damned him to life in prison without the possibility of parole
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 damning
Shawn Tully, Fortune, 26 Mar. 2026
Or Anita Hill’s should-have-been-damning testimony against then-Supreme Court justice candidate Clarence Thomas during Senate Judiciary Committee hearings in 1991.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026
Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
The damning revelations shed light on the AI industry’s reliance on overseas labor for data labeling to train their models, a hidden reality glossed over in marketing materials by one of the biggest tech companies in the world.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for damning
Adjective
Amid the increasingly damning reports on the rising threat of America’s runaway deficits and debt, the looming disaster that could upend the lifestyle of tens of millions of elderly Americans is getting scant attention.
—Shawn Tully, Fortune, 26 Mar. 2026
Or Anita Hill’s should-have-been-damning testimony against then-Supreme Court justice candidate Clarence Thomas during Senate Judiciary Committee hearings in 1991.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026
Verb
Yet that’s all Redzepi has done since the damning New York Times exposé.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 13 Mar. 2026
The damning revelations shed light on the AI industry’s reliance on overseas labor for data labeling to train their models, a hidden reality glossed over in marketing materials by one of the biggest tech companies in the world.
—Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 5 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for damning
Recent Examples of Synonyms for damning
Adjective
-
Duke appeared to be too much for the Huskies, who went more than five minutes without scoring during a disastrous first-half stretch to fall behind, 44-25.—
Dom Amore,
Hartford Courant,
30 Mar. 2026
-
And years later, when the group splintered into increasingly militant factions, some took part in a disastrous bank robbery that killed an innocent guard and two police officers—three men who were just doing their jobs that day, and who left behind their own kids, their own families.—
Zayd Ayers Dohrn,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
They were accused of minor infractions, such as cursing, missing a day of work or bringing a personal cellphone into the administration building.—
Erik Ortiz,
NBC news,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Shaffer-Brockwell could be heard on video repeatedly cursing at the officer before biting his wrist while trying to avoid being handcuffed.—
Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Documenting and denouncing shootings and arson attacks are easy.—
Jesse Brown,
The Atlantic,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Maryland Governor Wes Moore released a statement on Friday, denouncing a 30-day gas tax suspension.—
Mike Hellgren,
CBS News,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The 53-year-old grandmother faces sentencing in May and a possible jail term.—
Brian Maass,
CBS News,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Jurors convicted her of murder and related charges, sentencing her to three life terms in prison.—
Austin Sanders,
Austin American Statesman,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The Russian ambassador to Libya hung out in my room, as did a Russian kid named Konstantin with an unfortunate stutter and endearing affection for the American rock band Metallica.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The film is a Hulu release, continuing the rather unfortunate trend of comedy no longer being the box office powerhouse it once was.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
California's Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot said the state identified factors behind price spikes, but stopped short of blaming oil companies for price gouging.—
Richard Ramos,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
But there is no point blaming Tuchel for this.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The United Steelworkers issued a statement Thursday condemning the lockout of 1,600 workers across the two unions.—
Alexandra Kukulka,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Nacua apologized, and the Rams and the NFL issued statements condemning antisemitism and discrimination.—
Los Angeles Times staff,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
That is the highest-level designation for severe accidents, placing it alongside the fatal Challenger (1986) and Columbia (2003) shuttle disasters in terms of gravity.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
31 Mar. 2026
-
The cause of that fatal accident remains under investigation.—
Anna McAllister,
CBS News,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Damning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/damning. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
