Damage, n.
Etymology: [OF. damage, domage, F. dommage, fr. assumed LL. damnaticum, from L. damnum damage. See Damn.]
1. Injury or harm to person, property, or reputation; an inflicted loss of value; detriment; hurt; mischief. He that sendeth a message by the hand of a fool cutteth off the feet and drinketh damage. Prov. xxvi. 6. Great errors and absurdities many commit for want of a friend to tell them of them, to the great damage both of their fame and fortune. Bacon.
2. pl. (Law)
The estimated reparation in money for detriment or injury sustained; a compensation, recompense, or satisfaction to one party, for a wrong or injury actually done to him by another.
Note: In common-law action, the jury are the proper judges of damages. Consequential damage. See under Consequential. -- Exemplary damages (Law), damages imposed by way of example to others. -- Nominal damages (Law), those given for a violation of a right where no actual loss has accrued. -- Vindictive damages, those given specially for the punishment of the wrongdoer.
1 more senses
Syn. -- Mischief; injury; harm; hurt; detriment; evil; ill. See Mischief.
2 other Webster entries under this spelling
Damage, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Damages; p. pr. & vb. n. Damaging.]
To ocassion damage to the soudness, goodness, or value of; to hurt; to injure; to impair. He . . . came up to the English admiral and gave him a broadside, with which he killed many of his men and damaged the ship. Clarendon.
Damage, v. i.
To receive damage or harm; to be injured or impaired in soudness or value; as. some colors in damage in sunlight.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for damage; he lists it under abuse, injury.
Where he writes about it:
A tenant does not abuse rented property by "reasonable wear," though that may damage the property and injure its sale; he may abuse it by needless defacement or neglect. — from abuse
Damage (L. damnum, loss) is that which occasions loss to the possessor; hence, any impairment of value, often with the suggestion of fault on the part of the one causing it; damage reduces value, utility, or beauty; detriment (L. deterere, to rub or wear away) is similar in meaning, but far milder. — from injury
Detriment may affect value only; damage always affects real worth or utility; as a rule, the slightest use of an article by a purchaser operates to its detriment if again offered for sale, tho the article may have received not the slightest damage. — from injury
Damage is partial; loss is properly absolute as far as it is predicated at all; the loss of a ship implies that it is gone beyond recovery; the loss of the rudder is a damage to the ship; but since the loss of a part still leaves a part, we may speak of a partial or a total loss. — from injury