adventure

American  

[ad-ven-cher] / ædˈvɛn tʃər /

noun

1. an exciting or very unusual experience.

2. participation in exciting undertakings or enterprises.

   the spirit of adventure.

3. a bold, usually risky undertaking; hazardous action of uncertain outcome.

4. a commercial or financial speculation of any kind; venture.

5. Obsolete.

   1. peril; danger; risk.

   2. chance; fortune; luck.

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verb (used with object)

adventured, adventuring

1. to risk or hazard.

2. to take the chance of; dare.

3. to venture to say or utter.

   to adventure an opinion.

verb (used without object)

adventured, adventuring

1. to take the risk involved.

2. to venture; hazard.

adventure British  

/ ədˈvɛntʃə /

noun

1. a risky undertaking of unknown outcome

2. an exciting or unexpected event or course of events

3. a hazardous financial operation; commercial speculation

4. obsolete

   1. danger or misadventure

   2. chance

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verb

1. to take a risk or put at risk

2. to dare to go or enter (into a place, dangerous activity, etc)

3. to dare to say (something)

   he adventured his opinion

Other Word Forms

• adventureful adjective
• unadventuring adjective

Etymology

Origin of adventure

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English aventure, from Anglo-French, Old French, from Vulgar Latin adventūra (unrecorded) “what must happen,” feminine (originally neuter plural) of Latin adventūrus future participle of advenīre “to arrive”; ad- ad- replacing a- a- ⁵; advent, -ure

Explanation

An adventure is an exciting and probably risky trip, effort, or undertaking. Let's go explore the jungle! Don't be scared — it'll be an adventure! To a kid from the city, a ride on the subway is just another trip across town. To a kid from the suburbs, though, it can be a real adventure — a trip to a strange place with all sorts of strange people, new sights, and surprising twists and turns. If you've ever been to the Great Adventure amusement park, you know that the whole place is designed to make you feel as though you're on a wild, exciting, and thrilling trip — a great adventure. People often go on an adventure hoping something wonderful will come of it.

Example Sentences

Holding its own in second place in its fourth week in theaters is another space adventure flick, "Project Hail Mary," which earned $24.6 million over the weekend in the United States and Canada.

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

He knows he will never have room for the tables and chairs and ornate cabinets, but they reminded him of adventure, of possibility, of youth.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 11, 2026

TikTok and Instagram have seen an explosion of adventure cat content over the past few years - pets perched on paddleboards, scaling mountains or trotting on beaches.

From BBC • Apr. 5, 2026

"But I'm turning 50 this year, so I guess I had one more adventure to have," she said.

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

Madame Ionesco seemed far better prepared for this adventure than Penelope was.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• experience
• exploit
• feat
• scene
• trip