Threaten
To indicate an intention to cause harm or trouble; to be a danger to someone or something; to threaten with harm or negative consequences.
verbThreaten
To indicate an intention to cause harm or trouble; to be a danger to someone or something; to threaten with harm or negative consequences.
verbImagine This
Imagine a figure stepping into a dim room, voice low and serious, saying, 'If you reveal the secret, there will be consequences.' The very idea of those consequences is the threat.
Sounds Like
ˈθrɛtən (THRET-ən)
Looks Like
threat (noun) – similar spelling and root
Remember This
Remember this: threaten is the verb; threat is the noun. They share a root idea of danger, but threaten expresses the act or statement, while threat names the danger itself.
Other Forms
Connect With
menace, endanger, imperil, warn, coerce
Note
Use threaten with two common patterns: threaten to do something (threaten to leave, threaten to quit) and threaten someone with something (threaten the workers with a layoff, threaten them with fines). In passive constructions, the danger or consequence can be the subject: 'The project is threatened by delays.'