threat·en·ing

(thrĕt′n-nĭng)

adj.

1. Making or implying threats: a threatening phone call.

2. Gving warning signs of bad weather: threatening skies.

3. Causing the feeling that one's power, social standing, or self-esteem is in danger of being diminished: found the criticism threatening.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

threat•en•ing

(ˈθrɛt n ɪŋ)

adj.

1. tending or intended to menace: threatening gestures.

2. ominous: threatening clouds.

threat′en•ing•ly, adv.

syn: See ominous.

Threatening

of courtiers—Bk. of St. Albans, 1486.

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Adj.	1.	threatening - 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" menacing, minacious, minatory, ominous, sinister, baleful, forbidding alarming - frightening because of an awareness of danger
	2.	threatening - darkened by clouds; "a heavy sky" lowering, sullen, heavy cloudy - full of or covered with clouds; "cloudy skies"

threatening

adjective

1. menacing, bullying, intimidatory, terrorizing, minatory, comminatory The police should have charged them with threatening behaviour.

2. ominous, sinister, forbidding, grim, baleful, inauspicious, bodeful a threatening atmosphere of rising tension and stress
ominous promising, encouraging, reassuring, bright, comforting, favourable, auspicious, propitious

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

threatening

adjective

Expressing, indicating, or warning of an impending danger or misfortune:

minacious, minatory.

Translations

تَهْدِيدِيّ

výhružný

truende

uhkaava

prijeteći

minaccioso bieco minacciante

脅すような

위협적인

grozeč

hotfull

ที่ขู่เข็ญ

tehdit edici

đe dọa

胁迫的

threatening

[ˈθretnɪŋ] ADJ

1. (= menacing) [letter, gesture, phone call] → amenazador, de amenaza; [manner, voice] → amenazador
some men find her threatening → algunos hombres se sienten intimidados por ella
threatening behaviour → comportamiento m intimidatorio, conducta f intimidatoria or amenazadora

2. (= unpromising) [clouds, sky] → amenazador
the weather looked threatening → amenazaba temporal

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

threatening

[ˈθrɛt^ənɪŋ] adj

[person, manner, behaviour] → menaçant(e)
He looked very threatening → Il avait l'air très menaçant.

[letter] → de menace

[sky, clouds] → menaçant(e)

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

threatening

adj → drohend; weather, clouds also, situation → bedrohlich; a threatening letter/phone call → ein Drohbrief m → /-anruf m; threatening behaviour → Drohungen pl; to find somebody threatening → sich von jdm bedroht fühlen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

threatening

[ˈθrɛtnɪŋ] adj → minaccioso/a

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

threatening

→ تَهْدِيدِيّ výhružný truende drohend απειλητικός amenazador uhkaava menaçant prijeteći minaccioso 脅すような 위협적인 dreigend truende groźny ameaçador угрожающий hotfull ที่ขู่เข็ญ tehdit edici đe dọa 胁迫的

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

Then he would suddenly revert to the matter of the food I withheld from him, praying, begging, weeping, at last threatening. He began to raise his voice--I prayed him not to.

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"I have spoken to thee, friend," said Robin sternly, "and I now tell thee again, that thou goest not one step forward till thou hast done as I bid thee." So saying, he raised his quarterstaff above his head in a threatening way.

View in context

A JUDGE who had for years looked in vain for an opportunity for infamous distinction, but whom no litigant thought worth bribing, sat one day upon the Bench, lamenting his hard lot, and threatening to put an end to his life if business did not improve.

View in context

And if this seems a trifling risk, let us see whether it is equalled or surpassed by the encounter of two galleys stem to stem, in the midst of the open sea, locked and entangled one with the other, when the soldier has no more standing room than two feet of the plank of the spur; and yet, though he sees before him threatening him as many ministers of death as there are cannon of the foe pointed at him, not a lance length from his body, and sees too that with the first heedless step he will go down to visit the profundities of Neptune's bosom, still with dauntless heart, urged on by honour that nerves him, he makes himself a target for all that musketry, and struggles to cross that narrow path to the enemy's ship.

View in context

But whether the oppressor were overawed by the Gray Champion's look, or perceived his peril in the threatening attitude of the people, it is certain that he gave back, and ordered his soldiers to commence a slow and guarded retreat.

View in context

At the same time, I suspect him of merely attempting to frighten you, by threatening what he cannot really do.

View in context

According to police, preliminary information suggests that the man had visited the offices of an organisation offering services to foreign nationals before climbing on the roof and threatening to jump off.

Area cordoned off as man threatens to jump from building

A 33-year-old man with "an appalling record" was jailed for 21 months and ordered to be supervised for 10 months after his release for threatening to "slit the throat" of his ex-partner.

Jail for threat to slit throat of woman; COURT

Summary: Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], July 24 (ANI): Cyber Crime Police of Hyderabad on Tuesday arrested a person for allegedly making threatening calls to Minister of State (MoS) Home G Kishan Reddy.

Hyderabad: One arrested for making threat calls to Kishan Reddy

Filing an impeachment complaint against President Duterte is not a crime but "threatening somebody is," Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles said Wednesday.

Filing impeachment raps not a crime, but threating somebody is - Nograles

But, he also said, 'threatening the President to do some sort of action' and then 'threaten him with an impeachment complaint' may be considered 'criminal in nature.'

Threatening Duterte to act 'then threaten him with impeachment' maybe crime - Palace

A man escaped a prison sentence despite being convicted of threatening to murder a man and his family.

Murder threats