Synonyms of menace

menace 1 of 4

noun

ˈme-nəs 

as in threat

something that may cause injury or harm

a loaded gun is a menace that this household doesn't need

Synonyms & Similar Words

• threat
• danger
• risk
• peril
• hazard
• imminence
• trouble
• pitfall
• snare
• trap
• booby trap

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• protection
• guard
• ward
• shield
• harbor
• safeguard
• refuge
• shelter
• retreat
• asylum
• haven

menace

2 of 4

verb (1)

1

as in to endanger

to place in danger

menaced the children by leaving them in the car unattended

Synonyms & Similar Words

• endanger
• threaten
• risk
• adventure
• compromise
• jeopardize
• hazard
• peril
• imperil
• venture
• jeopard
• gamble (with)
• intimidate
• subject
• expose
• chance
• wager

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• protect
• guard
• shelter
• save
• preserve
• shield
• resume

2

as in to threaten

to remain poised to inflict harm, danger, or distress on

stockpiles of nuclear weapons that continue to menace the inhabitants of this planet

Synonyms & Similar Words

• threaten
• hang (over)
• endanger
• overhang
• hover (over)
• impend (over)
• jeopardize
• peril
• imperil
• hazard

menacing

3 of 4

adjective

1

as in ominous

being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come

warns that the emergence of new viruses is one of the most menacing developments we face

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ominous
• sinister
• threatening
• bleak
• dark
• somber
• foreboding
• portentous
• murky
• lonely
• darkening
• minatory
• black
• baleful
• dire
• desolate
• direful
• inauspicious
• depressive
• gray
• ill
• unfortunate
• depressing
• doomy
• ill-boding
• cold
• morbid
• unfavorable
• sullen
• dim
• saturnine
• morose
• gloomy
• lugubrious
• cheerless
• sepulchral
• lonesome
• discouraging
• elegiac
• troubled
• dismal
• forlorn
• disconsolate
• funereal
• glum
• dreary
• evil
• chill
• hopeless
• unpromising
• miserable
• malignant
• drear
• comfortless
• cloudy
• unpropitious
• disheartening
• tenebrous
• malign
• plutonian
• godforsaken
• wretched
• Cimmerian
• unlucky
• dreich
• sunless
• tenebrific
• ill-fated
• ill-starred
• star-crossed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• favorable
• benign
• bright
• promising
• unthreatening
• golden
• encouraging
• prosperous
• hopeful
• auspicious
• propitious
• heartening

2

as in dangerous

involving potential loss or injury

fears that the unemployment rate may be reaching menacing proportions

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dangerous
• hazardous
• perilous
• risky
• serious
• threatening
• unsafe
• treacherous
• precarious
• grave
• unhealthy
• grievous
• venturesome
• random
• destructive
• parlous
• uncertain
• unpleasant
• jeopardizing
• fatal
• harmful
• detrimental
• sickening
• lethal
• insecure
• murderous
• deadly
• ugly
• adverse
• bad
• evil
• malignant
• killer
• nasty
• haphazard
• wicked
• chance
• distressing
• pernicious
• noxious
• dicey
• injurious
• baleful
• fell
• deleterious
• inimical
• baneful
• hurtful
• dire
• ultrahazardous
• ill
• fateful
• mortal
• deathly
• pestilent

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• harmless
• innocuous
• innocent
• safe
• nonthreatening
• good
• beneficial
• unthreatening
• nonhazardous
• advantageous
• ultrasafe

menacing

4 of 4

verb (2)

present participle of menace

1

as in endangering

to place in danger

menaced the children by leaving them in the car unattended

Synonyms & Similar Words

• endangering
• threatening
• risking
• compromising
• jeopardizing
• intimidating
• imperiling
• gambling (with)
• venturing
• periling
• hazarding
• jeoparding
• adventuring
• subjecting
• exposing
• wagering
• chancing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• protecting
• guarding
• shielding
• preserving
• saving
• sheltering
• resuming

2

as in threatening

to remain poised to inflict harm, danger, or distress on

stockpiles of nuclear weapons that continue to menace the inhabitants of this planet

Synonyms & Similar Words

• threatening
• hanging (over)
• endangering
• hovering (over)
• impending (over)
• overhanging
• jeopardizing
• imperiling
• periling
• hazarding

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of menace

Noun

Most of the menace comes from simply listening to these people philosophize about death, fate and the consequences of bad decisions. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026

Bailey has been a menace, consistently pressuring Geno Smith during practices, and Baker Mayfield throughout the two joint practices. — Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 13 Aug. 2026

Verb

Centuries later, Zarkon continues to menace the universe. — Sergio Pereira, Space.com, 10 June 2026

Fueled by gusting winds and warm temperatures, multiple large wildfires continued to menace Southern California on Wednesday, prompting thousands of residents to evacuate, authorities said. — Bill Hutchinson, ABC News, 20 May 2026

Adjective

Lytonja Barfield, 58, was arrested on five counts of menacing after an investigation by the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office. — Christine Pelisek, PEOPLE, 21 Aug. 2026

Gregory drew her as mean, menacing, and thoroughly indifferent to male-centric standards of beauty and decorum. — Rob Salkowitz, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026

Verb

Dennis Hopper won a Best Villain MTV Movie Award for menacing a bus in this film. — Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2026

He was charged with criminal use of a firearm and menacing a police officer. — Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 5 Aug. 2026