Physical or psychological damage or injury; to cause damage, pain, or suffering to someone or something.
From Old English 'hearm' meaning grief, evil, or damage, related to Old Norse 'harmr' (sorrow). The Indo-European root meant 'to cut' or 'injure,' connecting harm to the fundamental concept of breaking wholeness.
The ancient connection between harm and cutting reveals how our ancestors understood damage as fundamentally about breaking integrity - whether physical wounds or emotional tears in the social fabric. This is why we still speak of 'cutting' remarks and 'sharp' words that can harm relationships.
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