hurt

[ hurt ]

verb (used with object)

, hurt, hurt·ing.

1. to cause bodily injury to; injure:

   He was badly hurt in the accident.

2. to cause bodily pain to or in:

   The wound still hurts him.

3. to damage or decrease the efficiency of (a material object) by striking, rough use, improper care, etc.:

   Moths can't hurt this suit because it's mothproof.

   Dirty oil can hurt a car's engine.

   Synonyms: impair, mar

4. to affect adversely; harm:

   to hurt one's reputation;

   It wouldn't hurt the lawn if you watered it more often.

5. to cause mental pain to; offend or grieve:

   She hurt his feelings by not asking him to the party.

   Synonyms: wound, afflict

verb (used without object)

, hurt, hurt·ing.

1. to feel or suffer bodily or mental pain or distress:

   My back still hurts.

   Synonyms: ache

2. to cause bodily or mental pain or distress:

   The blow to his pride hurt most.

3. to cause injury, damage, or harm.
4. to suffer want or need.

noun

1. a blow that inflicts a wound; bodily injury or the cause of such injury.
2. injury, damage, or harm.
3. the cause of mental pain or offense, as an insult.

   Synonyms: slight, cut

4. Heraldry. a rounded azure.

adjective

1. physically injured:

   The hurt child was taken to the hospital.

2. offended; unfavorably affected:

   hurt pride.

3. suggesting that one has been offended or is suffering in mind:

   Take that hurt look off your face!

4. damaged:

   hurt merchandise.

hurt

¹

/ hɜːt /

verb

1. to cause physical pain to (someone or something)
2. to cause emotional pain or distress to (someone)
3. to produce a painful sensation in (someone)

   the bruise hurts

4. informal.
   intr to feel pain

noun

1. physical, moral, or mental pain or suffering
2. a wound, cut, or sore
3. damage or injury; harm

adjective

1. injured or pained physically or emotionally

   a hurt look

   a hurt knee

hurt

²

/ hɜːt; hwɜːt /

noun

1. dialect.
   another name for whortleberry

Derived Forms

• ˈhurter, noun

Other Words From

• hurt·a·ble adjective
• hurt·er noun
• un·hurt adjective
• un·hurt·ing adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hurt¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English verb hurten, hirten, herten “to injure, damage, stumble, knock together,” apparently from Old French hurter “to knock (against), oppose” (compare French heurter, originally dialectal), probably a verbal derivative of Frankish unattested hûrt “ram,” cognate with Old Norse hrūtr; noun derivative of the verb

Word History and Origins

Origin of hurt¹

C12 hurten to hit, from Old French hurter to knock against, probably of Germanic origin; compare Old Norse hrūtr ram, Middle High German hurt a collision

Idioms and Phrases

see not hurt a fly .

Synonym Study

See injury.

Example Sentences

The exceptional offensive play of second-year defenseman Miro Heiskanen hasn’t hurt, either.

From FiveThirtyEight

He said that in the case of Away, he doesn’t think the brand will be hurt by having a one-time sale.

From Digiday

So, keep in mind that one or two redirects here and there might not hurt much, but don’t let that number grow.

From Search Engine Watch

Her plan was also hurt by the slumping economy this year, which pushed many state residents out of work and made more than 3,000 members eligible for Medicaid, the state-federal health program for the poor.

From Fortune

Scaling back the program would hurt not just those who have been injured but the many more people who count on vaccines to protect them from dangerous diseases.

From Fortune

The offices were firebombed in 2011; no one was hurt but a permanent police car was subsequently stationed outside.

From The Daily Beast

In 2012, as a 10th grader, Lean says he recorded his first legitimate song, “Hurt.”

From The Daily Beast

The “crying” incident is thought to have hurt Muskie in the primary--which he won handily, but with under 50 percent of the vote.

From The Daily Beast

Full-grown men play-acting at being hurt when absolutely nothing happened.

From The Daily Beast

Even the best of us can hurt the people who come to us for care when we forget that our foremost obligation is to them.

From The Daily Beast

Forget it not: for there is no returning, and thou shalt do him no good, and shalt hurt thyself.

From Project Gutenberg

No one was hurt, although the shot was evidently intended for my party.

From Project Gutenberg

Whatever he felt he usually kept bottled up inside, no matter how it hurt.

From Project Gutenberg

The poor dog was severely hurt about the neck; it recovered, however, soon afterwards.

From Project Gutenberg

A knife would hurt, but Aunty Rosa had told him, a year ago, that if he sucked paint he would die.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• ache
• bruise
• discomfort
• outrage
• pain
• suffering

Is Hurted A Word?

And is hurted in the dictionary?

Hurted is not listed as a word in this dictionary. It’s not used as the standard past tense of hurt, nor is it commonly used in any other way. (General note: Just because a word doesn’t appear in the dictionary doesn’t necessarily mean it’s “not a word.” Some people may use it, and if enough people eventually start using it, it may be added to the dictionary.)

What’s the past tense of hurt?

The past tense of hurt is simply hurt. Example: I hurt my arm yesterday. Because the past tense is not formed with -ed, it’s an example of an irregular verb. Like hurt, the past tense form of many other irregular verbs is the same as the present tense. Many common ones are also short words that end in t, such as set, hit, cut, shut, put, and quit.