as in to endanger
to remain poised to inflict harm, danger, or distress on
the powerful hurricane continues to threaten the southern coastline
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Recent Examples of threaten
Russian officials, at least covertly, have threatened US space infrastructure before.
—
Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 27 Apr. 2025
Palmer spent a large proportion of his time receiving and passing the ball too far from goal to threaten Jordan Pickford.
—Liam Twomey, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2025
The week before, another man high on meth armed with a machete threatened to chop the head off an employee’s three-year-old daughter.
—Jason Motlagh, Rolling Stone, 27 Apr. 2025
Now cuts to federal funding threaten efforts to prevent more cases and outbreaks.
—Arkansas Online, 14 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for threaten
Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 27 Apr. 2025
Palmer spent a large proportion of his time receiving and passing the ball too far from goal to threaten Jordan Pickford.
—Liam Twomey, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2025
The week before, another man high on meth armed with a machete threatened to chop the head off an employee’s three-year-old daughter.
—Jason Motlagh, Rolling Stone, 27 Apr. 2025
Now cuts to federal funding threaten efforts to prevent more cases and outbreaks.
—Arkansas Online, 14 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for threaten
Recent Examples of Synonyms for threaten
Verb
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The toxics killed fish and wildlife, closed beaches, and endangered environmentally sensitive areas.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Apr. 2025
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Without strategic global action, this figure could triple in the coming decades, threatening marine ecosystems, endangering wildlife, and impacting the millions of people who rely on the ocean for food, income, and survival.—
Dianne Plummer,
Forbes.com,
18 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Among the Trump administration’s demands on Columbia University in return for restoring $400 million in funding was a ban on masks, which many peaceful protesters wear not to menace others but to avoid being identified by facial recognition.—
Gal Beckerman,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2025
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So far, the wolves have never menaced any humans, but a risk does exist.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
7 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Threaten.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/threaten. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
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