menace
Americannoun
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something that threatens to cause evil, harm, injury, etc.; a threat.
Air pollution is a menace to health.
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a person whose actions, attitudes, or ideas are considered dangerous or harmful.
When he gets behind the wheel of a car, he's a real menace.
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an extremely annoying person.
verb (used with object)
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to utter or direct a threat against; threaten.
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to serve as a probable threat to; imperil.
overdevelopment that menaces our suburbs.
verb (used without object)
verb
noun
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literary a threat or the act of threatening
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something menacing; a source of danger
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informal a nuisance
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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menacesimple
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menacessimple
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have menacedperfect
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has menacedperfect
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am menacingprogressive
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are menacingprogressive
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is menacingprogressive
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have been menacingperfect progressive
-
has been menacingperfect progressive
Past
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menacedsimple
-
had menacedperfect
-
was menacingprogressive
-
were menacingprogressive
-
had been menacingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of menace
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English manace, manance, from Middle French manace, menace, from Late Latin minācia “threat,” equivalent to mināc- (stem of mināx ) “jutting out, threatening” + -ia; verb from noun; see -ia
Explanation
If it's threatening you or otherwise posing some sort of danger, then it's a menace. Angry rabid dogs, smog clouds, and annoying little brothers are all probable menaces. The word menace works as both a noun and a verb, but it wasn't used to describe threatening or bothersome people until 1936. Before then, common menaces probably included things like the plague, locusts, and roving bands of pirate ships. Today, a bad reputation can menace an otherwise promising career, weeds can menace your garden, and burglars are a menace to society.
Vocabulary lists containing menace
May the 4th Be With You: Star Wars Words
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Vocabulary from the Lyrics of Kanye West
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"The Bells" by Edgar Allan Poe
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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.
It’s a sea of nightmares in suits, and among them is Schlossberg, the Dennis the Menace we don’t deserve, don’t really want, but are burdened with regardless.
From Slate • Jun. 18, 2026
The Brady Bunch traveled there, and so did Dennis the Menace in a comic book I once owned.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 1, 2025
She also played Mrs Fairfax in 1996's Jane Eyre, and her range went far beyond the classics in films like Dennis the Menace, Last Action Hero and 101 Dalmatians.
From BBC • Jan. 17, 2025
Twenty-five years onward from the theatrical debut of "Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace," nearly every one of its haters has a story about how George Lucas wrecked their childhood.
From Salon • May 25, 2024
“Interesting,” Rishi said, a small breeze lifting a tuft of his hair so he looked, adorably, like an Indian Dennis the Menace.
From "When Dimple Met Rishi" by Sandhya Menon
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.
