adjective
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involving great risk
-
depending on chance
Other Word Forms
- hazardously adverb
- hazardousness noun
- nonhazardous adjective
- nonhazardously adverb
- nonhazardousness noun
- ultrahazardous adjective
- unhazardous adjective
- unhazardously adverb
Etymology
Origin of hazardous
Explanation
The noun "hazard" means something dangerous, and the adjective hazardous refers to anything that involves danger. A golf course with lots of sand traps is especially hazardous for golfers. That's why those traps are called hazards. If your car blows a tire in the middle of the night, make sure to turn on your hazard lights. Being invisible to other drivers is hazardous to everyone, especially yourself. Life is, by definition, hazardous. It's full of dangers, both obvious and otherwise. Acknowledge that fact and keep going anyway. If you spend all your time focusing on what's hazardous, you end up missing all the wonderful things in life.
Vocabulary lists containing hazardous
"The Banana Tree," Vocabulary from the short story
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Divergent
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List 7
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Many roads were blocked by trees overnight or restricted due to hazardous conditions, including the A8, A87 and A83.
From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026
Army Corps of Engineers cleared nearly 9,700 properties of hazardous items and other fire debris in eight months, one of the fastest cleanups of its size in modern history.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026
Manufacturing batteries is “extremely energy intensive,” involves more dangerous chemicals and results in more hazardous waste.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026
The National Weather Service warned that the heat wave, in addition to bringing risks of heat stress, also will create hazardous conditions along rivers as rapid snowmelt causes rising water levels and swift currents.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 15, 2026
“Hazmat is an abbreviation for hazardous material,” Journey says.
From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
