adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of dangerous
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English da(u)ngerous “domineering, fraught with danger,” from Old French dangereus “threatening, difficult,” equivalent to dangier ( see danger) + -eus -ous
Explanation
Use the word dangerous to describe anything that can potentially cause serious harm, like a snarling pit bull or an icy, treacherous road. The earliest meaning of the word dangerous was "difficult or arrogant." When Geoffrey Chaucer wrote "The Canterbury Tales" in the 1300s, he used dangerous to mean "hard to please." Gradually the meaning changed, so that by the late fifteenth century, dangerous meant "liable to cause hurt" or "risky." Just as popular were two other danger-related words that we don't use anymore today: dangersome and dangerful, which at the time could be used interchangeably with dangerous.
Vocabulary lists containing dangerous
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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.
"Defending the freedom of a sovereign state, taking a clear stand in support of a nation's democracy and independence, is dangerous in the eyes of these criminal entities."
From BBC ● Nov. 7, 2026
In 2023, then-U.S. surgeon general Vivek Murthy declared loneliness a public-health epidemic, saying it was as dangerous for people’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 7, 2026
Tesla went on to recall the Cybertruck seven times in its first year to address potentially dangerous defects.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026
“Traffic deaths are preventable and I’ll make sure we’re enforcing laws against dangerous driving, providing actual protection for people who walk and bike, and get our street lights back on and our streets fixed.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
It was difficult to find supplies, and once the papers were printed, it was incredibly dangerous to distribute them.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
