jeopardize

verb

jeop·​ar·​dize ˈje-pər-ˌdīz 

jeopardized; jeopardizing

transitive verb

: to expose to danger or risk : imperil

a decision that could jeopardize her career

laws jeopardizing freedom of speech

Did you know?

Jeopardize Has a Controversial History

It may be hard to believe that jeopardize was once controversial, but in 1870 a grammarian called it "a foolish and intolerable word," a view shared by many 19th-century critics. The preferred word was jeopard, which first appeared in print in the 14th century. (The upstart jeopardize didn't arrive until the late 16th century.) In 1828, Noah Webster himself declared jeopardize to be "a modern word, used by respectable writers in America, but synonymous with jeopard, and therefore useless." Unfortunately for the champions of jeopard, jeopardize is now much more popular.

Synonyms

• adventure
• compromise
• endanger
• gamble (with)
• hazard
• imperil
• jeopard
• menace
• peril
• risk
• venture

Examples of jeopardize in a Sentence

His health has been jeopardized by poor nutrition.

don't do anything that will jeopardize your place on the advisory board

Recent Examples on the Web

While heralded as a victory by some, this development jeopardizes the legal status of any foreign student on Dartmouth’s team. —Sam Peak, National Review, 10 Apr. 2024

The swelling appetite for more electricity could jeopardize the country’s plans to fight climate change. —Richard Schiffman, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024

Don’t let anyone jeopardize your chance to be happy. —Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2024

Delicate calculations Few analysts think Iran would stay out of a fight that jeopardized its most powerful proxy force, but Hezbollah’s careful public messaging shows how delicate calculations of deterrence and escalation may be. —Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 26 Mar. 2024

The Pharmacy Guild formed late last year in the wake of a series of high-profile walkouts by CVS and Walgreens pharmacists who decried untenable working conditions that jeopardize patient safety. —USA TODAY, 25 Mar. 2024

Democrats have pushed to defend IVF over concerns that lawmakers could jeopardize fertility treatments in the future. —Ian Max Stevenson, Idaho Statesman, 23 Mar. 2024

Planet and Maxar both do a great deal of business with the U.S. government, and intentionally helping Russia would jeopardize contracts and invite regulation. —Graeme Wood, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2024

His failure to deliver on an array of grand promises, like building bespoke AI models for nation states, and his decision to pour tens of millions into research without a sustainable business plan, eroded Stability’s foundations and jeopardized its future. —Kenrick Cai, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

see jeopardy

First Known Use

1582, in the meaning defined above

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Kids Definition

jeopardize

verb

jeop·​ar·​dize ˈjep-ər-ˌdīz 

jeopardized; jeopardizing

: to expose to danger