Detrimental: vocabulary and sample sentences

The word “detrimental” is a very useful word for IELTS. It is a word that could be used in listening, reading, writing task 2 and speaking.

Word Form and Meaning

  • detrimental (adj) = causing damage, harm or injury
  • detrimentally (adv)
  • detriment (n)
  • synonyms = damaging, destructive, harmful, adverse
  • antonyms = beneficial

Please remember that a synonym has a similar meaning but may not always be used in the exactly the same way. You must learn both meaning and how to use words to avoid mistakes in IELTS.

About the word “detrimental”

  • It is suitable to use in both IELTS writing task 2 and IELTS speaking.
  • It is a word that can appear in many topics.

Sample Sentences with “detrimental” and “detriment”

  1. Smoking is known to be detrimental to people’s health.
  2. Pressure from parents can be detrimental to their child’s academic progress.
  3. It is a detriment to the environment that more people are not aware of the harm that needless energy consumption can have.
  4. Prison sentences can have a detrimental impact on a criminal’s ability to reform.
  5. Shopping online has had a detrimental effect on local communities because people no longer go to town centers to do their shopping resulting in the closure of many small, local businesses.
  6. Using inappropriate idioms in formal essay writing can be detrimental to your score in the criterion of vocabulary in your IELTS writing task 2.

Never memorise sentences to use in your IELTS test. 

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Comments

  1. Hi, Liz.
    How are you feeling now? I really hope you are feeling better.
    I have a bit of an issue with using “the same” and “almost the same”. I would like to know if they mean the same thing, please. I was practicing with a material and in the passage it says “the sun and moon rise at almost the same time”. This section is the Y, N, NG one and in the question it says “the sun and moon rise at THE SAME TIME”. Should this be Y? The answer says it is but I think it is N. I really need your help on this one.

    Thank you so much

    • Can you let me know where you got the question from. Which IELTS Cambridge book did you use? If you didn’t use the IELTS Cambridge books, you didn’t use a real IELTS test published by IELTS.

      • Thank you so much for replying. I used Barron’s, 2010 edition. a very old one I know. I just wanted to see how I’d perform. I checked Cambridge website, not much to practice there as what they have is similar to what’s on the IELTS website. Using your app at the moment.

        • You need to get the IELTS Cambridge test books. There are 14 of them and book 14 is the most recent. Each one has four tests in. They are published by IELTS and are real papers – make sure you use them for your preparation. The Barron’s tests provide useful practice, but they were not published by IELTS – they are not authentic. That is the reason some questions seem slightly over-complicated. On this page you will see the information about the IELTS Cambridge test books: https://ieltsliz.com/recommended-books-for-ielts/

  2. Ayoub Yousif says

    Hi liz,
    Thanks! Just asking why don’t you upload new videos on YouTube anymore. You’ve incredible videos but we need more. It’s good for you and for us as well. You have almost 800,000 subscribers and 42.7 million views overall. So, please upload new ones.

    • The problem is my health. I became seriously ill and am still sick. I am able to maintain this website and that is all I can do while I’m sick.

      • Ayoub Yosif says

        Sorry to hear that, and wish you a speedy recovery.

      • I wish you well Liz, I hope you recover soon. My prayers are with you. Your website has been guiding us a lot. You have helped so many that I am sure you are blessed. You will be okay.

      • I hope you are better now Liz? Please we need you back safe and sound.if you need any help please notify.

        • It will take much longer before I’m better. It is a long term illness. I hope to feel a bit stronger by later next year.

  3. Hlo liz
    Could we use detriment?in term of negative

    • It is not a direct paraphrases but it does have negative connotations. You would need to learn the grammar and collocations surrounding the word to be able to use it without error.

  4. HiLiz,I’m thankful to you for the valuable lessons and information.how can I improve my vocabulary for new words

  5. Thanks for your posts. All the lessons are benificial for us . I want to know that in writing task 1 and 2 they limit the words , how many words can we use more? Kindly respond to me.

  6. Hello Liz,

    I find your tips and technique very useful. I applied some of them when I took the test a few weeks ago and I scored 8.0. For personal reason, I need to get an IELTS score of 9.0 in GT in the next few months. I wonder if you can give me some advice to achieve my goal? Thank you and I really appreciate your help.

    Regards,
    Stella

    • For listening and reading, it is based on more practice, deeper understanding of paraphrasing and developing your technique with questions. For speaking, add more grammar tenses into your answers – in part 2, add past memories, conditional ideas, future hopes, comparisons etc. Use better intonation to highlight ideas and use more contractions. In writing, the main difference between 8 and 9 is the density of errors. Never write to impress – write to be accurate in your language skills. Also work harder at your writing task 1 – it is easy to learn task 1 and you should easily be aiming for a clear 9 in that. Work on your overviews, selecting details and again – avoid errors in grammar and vocabulary. To be honest, it’s hard to give you tips as I can’t see your writing or hear your speaking so I can’t pin point your weaknesses. Anyway, think over some of these points and see if you can find your weaknesses. A band 9 is certainly possible so keep trying and be very focused in your training.

      • Hello Liz,

        Thank you very much for your advice, I really appreciate it!! I hope you have a great day ahead.

        Regards,
        Stella Nguyen

  7. MAM.Liz
    My IELTS score in aca and gen is
    lis 4. Rea 5. wri 5.5 .spe 5 over all 5
    i need your advise to increase my scores.I feeling depreased
    thanks a lot

    • You will need to improve your level of English. Tips and exam technique will help but the most important is your level of English. Join an English course or use English language websites to help you. You can find them through google.
      All the best
      Liz

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