threatening

[thret-n-ing]

adjective

1. tending or intended to menace.

   threatening gestures.

2. causing alarm, as by being imminent; ominous; sinister.

   threatening clouds.

Other Word Forms

• threateningly adverb
• nonthreatening adjective
• nonthreateningly adverb
• unthreatening adjective
• unthreateningly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of threatening¹

First recorded in 1520–30; threaten + -ing ²

Synonym Study

See imminent, ominous.

Example Sentences

Philippine authorities had warned of "destructive" and "life threatening" tsunami waves following Friday's earthquake, but the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said about an hour later that the threat had passed.

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Ministers hope the scheme will deter people from attempting to enter the UK illegally in small boats by threatening removal to France, with properly vetted asylum seekers accepted in return.

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In both word and stylized illustration, the 88 animals featured here are made to seem more funny than threatening.

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“The growing appetite for water-intensive agricultural products is threatening not only ecosystems and communities, but also the long-term stability of agri-food markets and investor returns,” the report said.

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A White House pressure campaign against the Federal Reserve is threatening the independence of one of the financial system’s bulwarks.

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Related Words

• aggressive 
• alarming 
• cautionary 
• dangerous 
• dire 
• sinister 
• ugly