imperil

verb

im·​per·​il im-ˈper-əl 

-ˈpe-rəl

imperiled or imperilled; imperiling or imperilling

transitive verb

: to bring into peril : endanger

a reckless act that imperiled us all

a list of imperiled species

imperilment

im-ˈper-əl-mənt 

-ˈpe-rəl-

noun

Synonyms of imperil

• endanger
• threaten

Examples of imperil in a Sentence

The toxic fumes imperiled the lives of the trapped miners.

The financial health of the company was imperiled by a string of bad investments.

a list of imperiled species

Recent Examples on the Web

Israelis are heading to the polls this week in a high-stakes election that could imperil Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyhu’s grip on power. — Oren Liebermann, CNN Money, 27 Oct. 2026

As Gruden sees it, the NFL and Goodell are to blame for allegedly engineering a controversy around emails Gruden wrote—a controversy that imperiled his ability to meet the duties of his Raiders employment contract. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 27 Oct. 2026

Elena Patel, who conducted the Brookings analysis, said service changes may still imperil mail-in votes in the general election. — Ken B. Morales, ProPublica, 22 Oct. 2026

That drew a swift rebuke from a bipartisan group of Senators, who wrote a letter to Apple arguing that to do so would imperil national security. — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 15 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English inperiled, from in- in- entry 2 + peril peril entry 1 + -ed -ed entry 1

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for imperil

• carbaryl
• glyceryl
• beryl
• feral
• karel
• peril
• seral
• sterile
• sterol
• foraminiferal
• tocopherol

Kids Definition

imperil

verb

im·​per·​il im-ˈper-əl 

imperiled or imperilled; imperiling or imperilling

: to place in great danger : endanger

imperilment

-əl-mənt 

noun