Synonyms for threatening
ˈθrɛt n ɪŋthreat·en·ing

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. threatening

   Imminent, from the Latin, with the sense of projecting over, signifies liable to happen at once, as some calamity, dangerous and close at hand. Impending, also from the Latin, with the sense of hanging over, is closely akin to imminent, but somewhat less emphatic. Imminent is more immediate, impending more remote, threatening more contingent. An impending evil is almost sure to happen at some uncertain time, perhaps very near; an imminent peril is one liable to befall very speedily; a threatening peril may be near or remote, but always with hope that it may be averted.

   Synonyms:
   imminent, impending

   Antonyms:
   chimerical, contingent, doubtful, improbable, problematical, unexpected, unlikely

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. threatening

   Synonyms:
   menacing, intimidating, minatory, comminatory, minacious, foreboding, unpromising, imminent, impending

   Antonyms:
   encouraging, promising, reassuring, enticing, passed, overpast, withdrawn

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:3.0 / 2 votes

1. baleful, forbidding, menacing, minacious, minatory, ominous, sinister, threateningadjective

   threatening or foreshadowing evil or tragic developments

   "a baleful look"; "forbidding thunderclouds"; "his tone became menacing"; "ominous rumblings of discontent"; "sinister storm clouds"; "a sinister smile"; "his threatening behavior"; "ugly black clouds"; "the situation became ugly"

   Synonyms:
   grim, inauspicious, sullen, minacious, baneful, lowering, black, baleful, dark, sinister, heavy, minatory, dour, ominous, menacing, ill, forbidding

   Antonyms:
   unalarming, clear

2. heavy, lowering, sullen, threateningadjective

   darkened by clouds

   "a heavy sky"

   Synonyms:
   ominous, laboured, sullen, laborious, overweight, toilsome, intemperate, forbidding, with child(p), sound, dark, wakeless, dense, grueling, dour, heavy(p), grave, cloggy, heavy(a), large(p), baleful, clayey, enceinte, minatory, menacing, grievous, glowering, fleshy, sour, weighed down, hard, weighty, impenetrable, gruelling, expectant, lumbering, ponderous, backbreaking, sonorous, great(p), profound, operose, saturnine, heavy, arduous, big(a), labored, moody, morose, punishing, glum, gravid, big(p), minacious, lowering, leaden, sinister

   Antonyms:
   unalarming, clear

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. threateningadjective

   Synonyms:
   menacing, impending, impendent, imminent, minatory

2. threateningnoun

   Synonyms:
   commination, threat, denunciation, menace

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. threateningadjective

   Synonyms:
   imminent, ominous, impending, minatory, fulminating

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "threatening":

   threat, menacing, threatens, threaten, threatened, endangering, threat-related, threats, jeopardizing, jeopardising, menace

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How to use threatening in a sentence?

1. Brandi Levy:

   If a student is targeting the school or threatening someone or bullying someone, that’s when I feel the school should step in. But for a student to express themselves and get in trouble for it, I feel like that’s not right.

2. Erik Voeten:

   Threatening a shutdown is simply not an option.

3. Paul Slovic:

   In the earliest days when we were evolving, there were plenty of dangers around, and those dangers were directly experienced, they were threats that we faced directly from threatening creatures or other tribes, it was all very direct and concrete. So these reactions based on feelings were very beneficial in helping us act quickly and to recognize friend from foe, it was us against them, like if you heard a sound in the bush that might be a dangerous animal, you didn't stop to reason about what was causing the sound -- was it really a dangerous animal ? -- you just accepted the fact that it sounded scary and you got out of there. You moved fast. So our survival depended on testing your emotions and behaving quickly, and acting according to those feelings.

4. Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer:

   Elrod repeatedly went into his waistband in a threatening manner.

5. Nancy Strand:

   For life-threatening injuries, call 911.