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Innocuous vs Benign - What's the difference?

innocuous | benign |

As adjectives the difference between innocuous and benign

is that innocuous is harmless; producing no ill effect while benign is kind; gentle; mild.

innocuous

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Harmless; producing no ill effect.
  • * 1892 , , A Footnote to History , ch. 9:
  • The shells fell for the most part innocuous ; an eyewitness saw children at play beside the flaming houses; not a soul was injured.
  • * 1910 , , The Lair of the White Worm , ch. 11:
  • Other things, too, there were, not less deadly though seemingly innocuous —dried fungi, traps intended for birds, beasts, fishes, reptiles, and insects.
  • * {{quote-news
  • , year=2011 , date=September 2 , author= , title=Wales 2-1 Montenegro , work=BBC citation , page= , passage=As the half closed Bale and Ledley both went close with good efforts, but Bellamy picked up a yellow card for an innocuous challenge that also rules the new Liverpool man out of the trip to Wembley.}}
  • Inoffensive; unprovocative; not exceptional.
  • * 1893 , , Mrs. Falchion , ch. 12:
  • Ruth Devlin announced that the song must wait, though it appeared to be innocuous and child-like in its sentiments.
  • * 1910 , , The Intrusion of Jimmy , ch. 28:
  • He sat down, and lighted a cigarette, casting about the while for an innocuous topic of conversation.

    Synonyms

    * innoxious, nonpoisonous, nontoxic * (inoffensive) uncontroversial

    Antonyms

    * nocuous * noxious * harmful * poisonous * toxic

    Derived terms

    * innocuity * innocuously * innocuousness

    benign

    English

    Adjective

    (en-adj)
  • Kind; gentle; mild.
  • * (of a climate or environment) mild and favorable
  • * not harmful to the environment: [in combination] an ozone-benign refrigerant.
  • (medicine) Not posing any serious threat to health; not particularly aggressive or recurrent.
  • Antonyms

    * malign * malignant

    Derived terms

    * benignly * benignant * benignity * benign neglect * benign tumor