injure

To injure someone means to cause physical harm, from a small cut or bruise to something much more serious. You might injure your knee playing soccer, or a car accident might injure several people at once. The word suggests that real damage has been done, not just brief pain. Even a minor injury can need medical attention.

Think of it like this: if you trip and fall badly, you might injure yourself. If you're careless, you could injure someone else. The word is also common in medical and legal writing, where people talk about injuries from accidents, work, or violence.

To injure means to cause physical harm to a person or an animal. It usually suggests more than a moment of pain. If someone is injured, some real damage has happened to the body, even if the damage is not severe. A person can injure a leg in a fall, a worker can be injured on the job, or several passengers can be injured in a crash.

The word is often used for accidents, sports, work, and traffic events, but it can also be used for deliberate harm. A falling branch can injure a hiker, a dog can injure a child, and an attacker can injure someone with a weapon. It fits both everyday situations and formal reports.

The seriousness of an injury can vary a lot. It may be a cut, a sprain, a broken bone, or something life-threatening. In medical, news, and legal language, the word is very common. You may read about injured workers, injured passengers, or injured players after an accident or attack.

Although hurt and injure are sometimes close in meaning, injure is usually more formal and more clearly connected to physical damage. You can hurt your toe by bumping it, but you are more likely to say you injured it if you cracked the bone or damaged it badly. In short, injure is the word for causing bodily harm, whether the harm is minor or serious.