danger

1 of 2

noun

dan·​ger ˈdān-jər 

1

: exposure or liability to injury, pain, harm, or loss

a place where children could play without danger

was assured her job was not in danger

2

: a case or cause of danger

the dangers of mining

3

a

archaic : jurisdiction

You stand within his danger, do you not?

—Shakespeare

b

obsolete : reach, range

… out of the shot and danger of desire.

—Shakespeare

4

obsolete : harm, damage

… a sting in him that at his will he may do danger with.

—Shakespeare

danger

2 of 2

verb

dangered; dangering; dangers

transitive verb

archaic

: endanger

Synonyms

Noun

• distress
• endangerment
• harm's way
• imperilment
• jeopardy
• peril
• risk
• trouble

Examples of danger in a Sentence

Noun

I was unaware of the danger that lay ahead.

She was fearless in the face of danger.

The sign on the door read “Danger. Keep out.”

There's less danger that you'll lose your money if you have a wide variety of investments.

There's a danger that your apology will be taken as a sign of weakness.

The danger is that we'll become careless as the process becomes more familiar.

It's important to teach your children about the dangers of smoking.

Here is a list of possible dangers associated with the procedure.

We believe it poses a serious danger to our national security.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Panguitch Mayor Kim Soper urged residents to steer clear of the creek receiving runoff from the reservoir, warning that the water level is much higher than usual and is a danger to children. —CBS News, 11 Apr. 2024

The Ludlow Police Department issued a statement Thursday morning saying there is no danger to the public. —Jennifer Edwards Baker and Payton Marshall, The Enquirer, 11 Apr. 2024

Most critically, there is a real danger that informational disclosure risks preempting deeper, tougher regulations that might be warranted. —TIME, 11 Apr. 2024

Tasked with finding the cause, Scales must wrestle with her own family history and worldview as her hunt unearths a danger that threatens both Wiley City and Ashtown. —Diya Chacko, Orange County Register, 11 Apr. 2024

Upstaging is always a danger in any story in which the main character is a reactive chameleon. —Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Apr. 2024

Milwaukee police send that type of alert to news outlets to inform the public about a missing person who may be in immediate danger. —Elliot Hughes, Journal Sentinel, 9 Apr. 2024

Jabbari said that Majors refuses to acknowledge his guilt and remains a danger. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 9 Apr. 2024

Until the moon completely blocks the sun's disc on the path of totality and ushers in darkness, the sun's rays will pose a danger to unprotected retinas gazing skyward. —Eric Lagatta, USA TODAY, 30 Mar. 2024

Verb

Fear is the right response to danger—the emotional presentation of our survival instinct. —Lydia Millet, TIME, 2 Apr. 2024

Thankfully, her mother survived, but Cardenas-Haro questioned the decision not to activate sirens that might have alerted people to danger earlier. —Kerry Breen, CBS News, 17 Aug. 2023

Trackside devices known as hot bearing detectors are designed to scan a passing train and alert crews to danger. —Luz Lazo and Ian Duncan, BostonGlobe.com, 23 June 2023

Up to that point, being close enough to danger to report on it with accuracy had become a way of life. —Mark Guarino, ABC News, 15 Mar. 2023

Our heads are great with facts and logic, our hearts speak our desires, and our gut senses danger. —Expert Panel®, Forbes, 5 May 2023

On or off the clock, the first responders of 9-1-1 are no strangers to danger. —Patrick Gomez, EW.com, 17 Mar. 2023

What starts as an innocuous activity often spirals into disruption and sometimes danger as new groups of people continually trying to outdo prior participants. —Adario Strange, Quartz, 5 July 2022

Some scientists say such behavior is not always playfulness and can instead be an attempt to alert others to danger. —From Usa Today Network and Wire Reports, USA TODAY, 30 Sep. 2021

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

Middle English daunger, from Anglo-French dangier, dongier, from Vulgar Latin *dominiarium, from Latin dominium ownership

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 3a

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing danger

• danger pay
• danger money
• out of danger
• in danger

Kids Definition

danger

noun

dan·​ger

ˈdān-jər

1

: the state of not being protected from injury, harm, or evil

2

: something that may cause injury or harm

the dangers of the jungle