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damaged goods
plural noun
: a person considered to be flawed or spoiled in character, efficiency, or worth
Examples of damaged goods in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Lost or damaged goods and inaccurate records also play a part.
—Jennifer Williams-Alvarez, WSJ, 9 Jan. 2024
Could Greitens be damaged goods?
—Mica Soellner, Washington Examiner, 28 Mar. 2021
Story was damaged goods when the Red Sox signed him last March.
—Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, 14 Jan. 2023
But the Conservatives have to decide if Truss is permanently damaged goods in the eyes of the voters.
—Peter Weber, The Week, 17 Oct. 2022
One was due to shifting priorities that made an allegedly medicore streaming flick damaged goods from a prior regime.
—Scott Mendelson, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022
The hot candidate one offseason can be damaged goods the next if he’s passed over for too many jobs.
—Dallas News, 27 Jan. 2022
The son who cringingly rapped at an event celebrating his dad’s half-century reign at Waystar Royco was always damaged goods.
—Los Angeles Times, 2 Dec. 2021
He was damaged goods—parents dead, schooled abroad too long, cut off from the oxygen of living in this place.
—Daniyal Mueenuddin, The New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2021
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'damaged goods.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1807, in the meaning defined above
Dictionary Entries Near damaged goods
Cite this Entry
“Damaged goods.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/damaged%20goods. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.
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