adventure

verb

adventured; adventuring əd-ˈven-ch(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to expose to danger or loss : venture

… those who adventured their persons and lives risked all they had for a slender reward.

—Joseph Conrad

2

: to venture upon (see venture entry 1 sense 2) : try

… the task was always one of great difficulty and art—so much so, that it could seldom be adventured in rough or windy weather.

—Edward Bulwer-Lytton

intransitive verb

1

: to proceed despite risk

… people going away to adventure upon the sea …

—Virginia Woolf

2

: to take the risk

… I would adventure for such merchandise.

—William Shakespeare

Synonyms of adventure

• endanger
• risk
• threaten
• venture
• menace

Examples of adventure in a Sentence

adventured all his savings in a very risky investment scheme

if I had to adventure a guess, I'd say she's about 35

Recent Examples on the Web

Quite often, the series has been described as what would happen if Solo and a crew flew around space and experienced high-stakes adventures. —Sergio Pereira, Space.com, 3 June 2026

Cassie’s OnlyFans adventures, for interest, were depicted with a kind of sneering derision toward the character’s poor judgement and lack of savvy. —Alison Herman, Variety, 1 June 2026

After adventuring in Yellowstone National Park, a mere 80 minutes away, don’t miss the world-class Lebanese-Mediterranean fare at FIGS. —Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 May 2026

These have really opened up quite remote parts of southern Peru to adventure travel, to a higher-end clientele. —AFAR Media, 11 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

alteration (with -d- restored from Latin) of Middle English aventuren, auntren "to happen, expose to risk, take a chance," borrowed from Anglo-French aventurer, verb derivative of aventure "chance, occurrence, risk" — more at adventure entry 1

First Known Use

1529, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Phrases Containing adventure

• adventure playground

Rhymes for adventure

• debenture
• indenture
• bencher
• denture
• quencher
• trencher
• venture
• misadventure
• peradventure

Kids Definition

adventure

1 of 2 noun

ad·​ven·​ture əd-ˈven-chər 

1

: an action involving unknown risks or dangers

2

: the encountering of risks

the spirit of adventure

3

: an unusual or exciting experience

the field trip was an adventure

adventure

2 of 2 verb

adventured; adventuring

-ˈvench-(ə-)riŋ

1

: risk entry 2 sense 1, venture

2

: to venture upon

explorers adventuring the wilderness