danger

American  

[deyn-jer] / ˈdeɪn dʒər /

noun

• dangers
  plural

1. liability or exposure to harm or injury; risk; peril.

2. an instance or cause of peril; menace.

3. Obsolete. power; jurisdiction; domain.

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danger British  

/ ˈdeɪndʒə /

noun

1. the state of being vulnerable to injury, loss, or evil; risk

2. a person or thing that may cause injury, pain, etc

3. obsolete power

4. liable to

5. critically ill in hospital

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Synonym Usage

Danger, hazard, peril, jeopardy imply harm that one may encounter. Danger is the general word for liability to all kinds of injury or evil consequences, either near at hand and certain, or remote and doubtful: to be in danger of being killed. Hazard suggests a danger that one can foresee but cannot avoid: A mountain climber is exposed to many hazards. Peril usually denotes great and imminent danger: The passengers on the disabled ship were in great peril. Jeopardy, a less common word, has essentially the same meaning as peril, but emphasizes exposure to the chances of a situation: To save his friend he put his life in jeopardy.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superdanger
  noun
• dangerless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• dangers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of danger

First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English da(u)nger, from Anglo-French, Old French dangier, alteration of dongier (by influence of dam damage ), from Vulgar Latin domniārium (unrecorded), equivalent to Latin domini(um) dominion + -ārium (neuter of -ārius -ary )

Explanation

When you're in danger, it seems likely that you might get hurt. Your mom might warn you that if you don't wear your bicycle helmet, you're in danger of getting injured. A baby bird teetering on the edge of its nest is in danger, and a driver whose car stalls on railroad tracks is also in danger. When something unpleasant might happen, you can also use the word danger: "We were in danger of running out of guacamole before the party ended." Danger can also be a precarious or perilous place, as when you step up on the curb on a busy street, out of danger.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

danger dangers

James does share moments of affection and victory with Odin but there’s nothing to relieve the constant danger, even though structurally, the film has already sapped its potential suspense.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2026

Safety had become a concern, and Edison argued that high-tension currents, particularly alternating current, posed an unacceptable danger.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 23, 2026

The problem is that this disconnection does not always disappear once the danger has passed.

From Slate ● Sep. 23, 2026

"It poses a real and present danger to the well-being and mental health of school leaders and teachers, possibly even a risk to life."

From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026

At least the dogs weren’t in danger of starving.

From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith

But these sites also come with dangers, as demonstrated by the massive Moss Landing battery fire in January 2025, which prompted the evacuation of about 1,500 residents and deposited heavy metals in a nearby estuary.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026

API also issued a press release on the dangers of an export ban.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026

The leaders of AI companies are right to take the risks they see seriously, and government has a legitimate role when developers can impose dangers on others.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 22, 2026

Last week, Huang appeared at a UK summit hosted by King Charles, who warned tech leaders of the "existential dangers" of AI.

From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2026

She decided to warn them about other humans and the dangers they posed.

From "The Birchbark House" by Louise Erdrich

Related Words

• crisis
• emergency
• exposure
• insecurity
• instability
• jeopardy
• menace
• peril
• pitfall
• possibility
• probability
• risk
• threat
• uncertainty
• vulnerability