menace
something that threatens to cause evil, harm, injury, etc.; a threat: Air pollution is a menace to health.
a person whose actions, attitudes, or ideas are considered dangerous or harmful: When he gets behind the wheel of a car, he's a real menace.
an extremely annoying person.
to utter or direct a threat against; threaten.
to serve as a probable threat to; imperil: overdevelopment that menaces our suburbs.
to express or serve as a threat.
Origin of menace
1Other words from menace
- men·ac·er, noun
- pre·men·ace, noun, verb (used with object), pre·men·aced, pre·men·ac·ing.
- un·men·aced, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use menace in a sentence
“This authoritarian menace will not succeed in his attempts to overthrow our democratically elected government,” he said.
‘Sit down!’ ‘No, you sit down!’ Democrat’s speech nearly triggers fistfight on House floor | Timothy Bella, Lateshia Beachum | January 7, 2021 | Washington PostThis would be the last performance I’d enjoy with no thought of viral menace lurking in the house.
A common complaint among any astronaut who’s gone on an EVA is that the gloves are a menace.
Current spacesuits won’t cut it on the moon. So NASA made new ones. | Neel Patel | December 29, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewClouds often did seem to sail overhead, but they seemed devoid of threat or menace, even if they at times appeared to move swiftly enough to suggest a strong breeze and vigorous gusts.
A fine, bright day in Washington, but the curtain descends quickly | Martin Weil | November 29, 2020 | Washington PostThis invisible menace, transmitted by tiny aerosols primarily when humans gather, has so far infected nearly 9 million Americans and ended nearly 228,000 lives.
Football is back in Happy Valley. The coronavirus never left. | Kent Babb | October 30, 2020 | Washington Post
Which parent in Central Park, young child in tow, has not been menaced out of his wits by speeding bicyclists?
Americans were frequently insulted, called cowards, and openly menaced by the insurgents.
The Philippine Islands | John ForemanEngland would have been severed from her Indian Empire, and menaced in the outposts of her naval power.
The British Expedition to the Crimea | William Howard RussellHe would not defend the deceiving priest; but no unruly men-at-arms should touch a hair of Sebastian, if he also was menaced.
God Wills It! | William Stearns DavisThe descendants of the Norman barons menaced, and sometimes proved too powerful for the Crown.
Landholding In England | Joseph FisherIt is only when our rights are invaded, or seriously menaced, that we resent injuries or make preparations for our defence.
Key-Notes of American Liberty | Various
British Dictionary definitions for menace
/ (ˈmɛnɪs) /
to threaten with violence, danger, etc
literary a threat or the act of threatening
something menacing; a source of danger
informal a nuisance
Origin of menace
1Derived forms of menace
- menacer, noun
- menacing, adjective
- menacingly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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