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
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
Debt collectors cannot engage in any type of harassment that includes profane, abusive or threatening language when attempting to collect a debt.
—
Staff, Sacramento Bee, 26 Feb. 2025
The visitors were the more threatening team through the opening exchanges, with the returning Erling Haaland eventually capitalising, converting Jeremy Doku’s low centre after a flowing move up-field.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
In contemporary Europe, division within the states, in my view, is more threatening than division between the states.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2025
This serves as a form of motion camouflage, as the downward motion of the stripe counters the more threatening expanding motion as the cuttlefish approaches its prey.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for threatening
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Staff, Sacramento Bee, 26 Feb. 2025
The visitors were the more threatening team through the opening exchanges, with the returning Erling Haaland eventually capitalising, converting Jeremy Doku’s low centre after a flowing move up-field.
—Jack Pitt-Brooke, The Athletic, 26 Feb. 2025
In contemporary Europe, division within the states, in my view, is more threatening than division between the states.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2025
This serves as a form of motion camouflage, as the downward motion of the stripe counters the more threatening expanding motion as the cuttlefish approaches its prey.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 20 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for threatening
Cite this Entry
“Threatening.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/threatening. Accessed 5 Mar. 2025.
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