threatening

adjective

threat·​en·​ing ˈthret-niŋ 

ˈthre-tᵊn-iŋ

: expressing or suggesting a threat of harm, danger, etc.

received a threatening message

a threatening manner

: indicating or suggesting the approach of possible trouble or danger

saw threatening clouds on the horizon

threateningly

ˈthret-niŋ-lē

ˈthre-tᵊn-iŋ- 

adverb

gestured threateningly

Synonyms

• impending
• looming
• possible

Examples of threatening in a Sentence

economists warning of a threatening recession

a threatening silence followed the loud thump in the adjoining motel room

threatening rocks lined that narrow stretch of the river through which we would be rafting

Recent Examples on the Web

The driver of the SUV was transported to an area hospital with injuries police believed to be not life-threatening. —Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 13 Sep. 2025

Walshe’s injuries were not life-threatening, and he was treated overnight at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and returned to jail. —Flint McColgan, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025

On the other side of my career was a threatening darkness. —Literary Hub, 12 Sep. 2025

Chambers’ defense attorney, Abram Genser, argued any injuries Chambers may have inflicted were not life-threatening, and Dadkhah died instead of a brain bleed caused by excessive methamphetamine use. —City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Sep. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing threatening

• life-threatening

Rhymes for threatening

• nonthreatening