Threatening

Pronunciation: /ˈθrɛtənɪŋ/

Definitions of threatening

adjective expressing a threat or conveying a sense of impending harm or danger

Example Sentences

A1 The dark clouds in the sky looked threatening.

A2 The teacher gave a threatening look to the students who were misbehaving.

B1 The email from the boss had a threatening tone, warning of consequences if deadlines were not met.

B2 The suspect made a threatening gesture towards the police officers, causing them to draw their weapons.

C1 The country issued a threatening statement to its neighboring nations, escalating tensions in the region.

C2 The CEO's threatening remarks to the employees led to a mass exodus of talent from the company.

Examples of threatening in a Sentence

formal The company received a threatening letter from a competitor's legal team.

informal I saw a group of teenagers making threatening gestures towards each other.

slang Don't mess with him, he's known for being really threatening when he's angry.

figurative The storm clouds were threatening in the distance, hinting at a potential downpour.

Grammatical Forms of threatening

• past tense: threatened
• plural: threatenings
• comparative: more threatening
• superlative: most threatening
• present tense: threatens
• future tense: will threaten
• perfect tense: have threatened
• continuous tense: is threatening
• singular: threatening
• positive degree: threatening
• infinitive: to threaten
• gerund: threatening
• participle: threatened

Origin and Evolution of threatening

First Known Use: 1250 year

Language of Origin: Old English

Story behind the word: The word 'threatening' originated from the Old English word 'þreaten', which means to show hostility or intent to harm.

Evolution of the word: Over time, the word 'threatening' has retained its original meaning of conveying a sense of danger or harm, but it has also evolved to encompass a broader range of contexts, including verbal or non-verbal expressions of intimidation or coercion.