danneggiando

Danneggiando is the present participle, or gerund, of the Italian verb danneggiare, meaning to damage or to harm. As a gerund, danneggiando denotes an ongoing action of causing damage and is used to describe the manner in which something is done or to link clauses with an adverbial sense, similar to “by damaging” or “while damaging” in English. For example, in a sentence like “Danneggiando la porta, l’intruso è entrato,” the phrase expresses that the intrusion occurred as a result of damaging the door.

Etymology and form: the verb danneggiare derives from the noun danno (harm, damage) and uses the -eggiare suffix common to several Italian verbs. The gerund is formed by adding -ando to the stem (danneggia-), yielding danneggiando.

Usage notes: in standard Italian, the gerund is primarily used to indicate concomitant actions or cause. It differs from the present participle adjective danneggiante, which would describe something that causes damage rather than an action performed by the subject. The related noun danneggiamento denotes the act or result of damage and is frequently used in legal, administrative, or technical contexts.

See also: danneggiare, danno, danneggiamento, danneggiante.