threat

[ thret ]
See synonyms for: threatthreats on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. a declaration of an intention or determination to inflict punishment, injury, etc., in retaliation for, or conditionally upon, some action or course: His family convinced him to take the anonymous threats seriously and call the police.

  2. an indication or warning of probable trouble, or of being at risk for something terrible:The threat of a storm was in the air.He confessed under the threat of imprisonment.

  1. a person or thing that threatens: Her attorney will try to convince the judge that she is not a threat to herself or others.

verb (used with or without object)
  1. Archaic. to threaten: Do you dare to accuse and threat within my very home?

Origin of threat

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English noun thret(e) “crowd, multitude, verbal menace,” Old English thrēat “crowd, pressure, oppression, punishment”; cognate with Old Norse thraut “hardship, great struggle”; verb from the noun; see also threaten

Other words from threat

  • coun·ter·threat [koun-ter-thret], /ˈkaʊn tərˌθrɛt/, noun

Words Nearby threat

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use threat in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for threat

threat

/ (θrɛt) /


noun
  1. a declaration of the intention to inflict harm, pain, or misery

  2. an indication of imminent harm, danger, or pain

  1. a person or thing that is regarded as dangerous or likely to inflict pain or misery

verb
  1. an archaic word for threaten

Origin of threat

1
Old English; related to Old Norse thraut, Middle Low German drōt

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with threat

threat

see triple threat.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.