injure
UK[ˈɪndʒə(r)]US[ˈɪndʒər]
v
To cause physical harm or damage to a living being.
v
To hurt someone's feelings or reputation.
Morpheme Breakdown
in
jure
in
not
jure
law
Etymology
The word "injure" originates from the Latin verb injuriare, meaning "to treat unjustly" or "to wrong". This verb itself is derived from the noun injuria, which combines the prefix in- (meaning "not" or "against") with jus (meaning "law" or "right"). Thus, the literal sense is "an action against what is right". Over time, the meaning broadened from a purely legal or moral concept of wrongdoing to encompass the more general and physical sense of causing harm or damage. The semantic logic connects the idea of violating what is lawful or right to the act of inflicting harm upon a person.
Analysis
Structure: in (not) + jure (law)
- in: Latin origin, a prefix meaning "not" or "against".
- jure: From Latin jus (law, right), representing the stem of the word.
Examples
The crash did not injure any of the passengers.
He was deeply injured by their false accusations.
Careless words can injure a friendship.