endangered

[en-deyn-jerd]

adjective

1. threatened with a danger.

   endangered lives of trapped coal miners.

2. Biology, Ecology.,  generally perceived as threatened with extinction.

   In 1967, the U.S. government declared the bald eagle endangered, but the national bird’s population recovery since then has been remarkable.

3. Biology, Ecology.,  (of a threatened plant or animal species) having a very high risk of extinction, second only to the status of critically endangered, as categorized by the IUCN Red List: EN

   There are more than 3,600 endangered plant species throughout the world.

endangered

/ ɪnˈdeɪndʒəd /

adjective

1. in danger: used esp of animals in danger of extinction

   the giant panda is an endangered species

Other Word Forms

• unendangered adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of endangered¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; endanger + -ed ²

Example Sentences

That leaves Lloyd Webber and many others questioning if the Broadway musical is an endangered species, even though Lloyd Webber has a new work, “The Illusionist,” in development.

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“The Orchid Thief” took on a typically left-field Orlean subject: the trial of a Florida horticulturalist accused of stealing endangered species from a swamp in the Seminole Indian reserve.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Arctic seals and birds are coming under increasing threat, mainly due to climate change and human activity, according to an updated list of endangered species released Friday by the world's top conservation body.

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Once hunted extensively for turtle soup, its eggs as a delicacy and decorative shells, the ancient mariner saw its numbers plummet and has been listed as endangered since the 1980s.

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Qatar seems to have been influenced by Israel’s much-denounced Sept. 9 strike on Hamas leaders in Doha, which endangered the ruling al-Thani family’s lucrative double game.

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Related Words

• threatened www.thesaurus.com