endanger
Americanverb (used with object)
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endangers,
present (3rd person singular)
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endangered,
past participle, past
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endangering
present participle
verb
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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endangersimple
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endangerssimple
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have endangeredperfect
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has endangeredperfect
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am endangeringprogressive
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are endangeringprogressive
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is endangeringprogressive
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have been endangeringperfect progressive
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has been endangeringperfect progressive
Past
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endangeredsimple
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had endangeredperfect
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was endangeringprogressive
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were endangeringprogressive
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had been endangeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of endanger
late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at en- 1, danger
Explanation
To endanger someone is to put them in a dangerous position, or to threaten their safety. It would endanger your little brother if you encouraged him to jump off the garage roof into a pile of leaves. Texting while you drive is a good way to endanger yourself, as well as your passengers and anyone else nearby. Scientists warn that climate change will slowly begin to endanger many plant and animal species on Earth, possibly including humans. This 15th century word combines the prefix en-, "make or put in" with danger, from the Old French dangier, "power to harm."
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.
See Examples For:
In his opinion, it could also endanger the artificial-intelligence capital-expenditure boom.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 9, 2026
At least nine companies sell pricey pesticide treatments or natural oil sprays for the backyard that are supposed to repel deer, or ticks, sparking an angry debate over whether they also endanger pets and pollinators.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
It applies to monuments and architecture, but also works of art and books, requiring states to safeguard and respect cultural property and refrain from any actions that might endanger it.
From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026
Don’t force them to flout congressional intent or endanger lives in doing so.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026
“The last person I told ended up turned. And I'm not about to endanger another Miss Preston's girl.”
From "Dread Nation" by Justina Ireland
Although it endangers his secret Traitor identity, he tries to protect Funches.
From Salon ● Jun. 20, 2026
The judge emphasized that Dobbs focused on a right to elective abortion, while Seyb’s case “tests how far Idaho may go when a woman’s pregnancy severely endangers her health.”
From Slate ● Jun. 16, 2026
An emissions proposal from the International Maritime Organization endangers the industry—and all of commercial shipping.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 20, 2026
“Engaging in such illegal activities endangers both visitors and National Park Service first responders,” Carr said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 5, 2026
“It’s because he won’t ask nobody to help him that he endangers us all!”
From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols
One key objection was the mature tone of the narrative, in which the child protagonist is directly confronted and endangered by the evils derived from fascist ideologies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
The research team say climate change is affecting the birds' food supply and survival, and the penguins may now be officially endangered.
From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026
Photos showed how the endangered moths clustered together so densely inside their caves, it was impossible to see the rock beneath.
From Barron's ● Oct. 2, 2026
But due process is endangered if victims can’t report allegations without facing public abuse and threats of being falsely accused themselves that it becomes psychologically impossible to live their lives.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
He hated the light bulb’s monotonous surveillance; it disturbed his sleep and, more explicitly, endangered the success of a private project— escape.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
Without collecting race and ethnicity data in the census, these estimates could not be produced, needlessly wasting resources and endangering lives.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
As “laboratories of democracy,” the 50 states can each implement novel economic and social policies without endangering the entire country if they fail.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
A jury in New Mexico previously ordered Meta to pay $375 million after it found the company liable for endangering children by making them vulnerable to predators on its platforms, among other harms.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
Two men who piloted overcrowded small boats have been jailed for endangering others while crossing the Channel.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
Their point was that a human being in a gamma field was endangering his life and that it didn’t matter that he could remain there half an hour safely.
From "I, Robot" by Isaac Asimov
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.
