menace

See also: menacé

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmɛnɪs/
• Rhymes: -ɛnɪs

Etymology 1

First attested ante 1300: from the Old French manace, menace, from the Latin minācia, from minax (“threatening”), from minor (“I threaten”).

Noun

menace (plural menaces)

1. a perceived threat or danger.
   • Dryden

     the dark menace of the distant war.

2. the act of threatening.
3. an annoying and bothersome person.

Translations

perceived threat or danger

• Finnish: uhka (fi)

• German: Drohung (de), Bedrohung (de)

act of threatening

• Finnish: uhkailu (fi), uhkaus (fi)

• German: androhen (de), bedrohen (de)

annoying and bothersome person

• Finnish: ilkimys, ilkiö (fi), maanvaiva

• German: Plage (de), Landplage

References

• “menace, n.” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2nd Ed.; 1989]

Etymology 2

First attested in 1303: from the Old French menacer, manecier, manechier and the Anglo-Norman manasser, from the assumed Vulgar Latin *mināciāre, from the Latin minācia, whence the noun.

Verb

menace (third-person singular simple present menaces, present participle menacing, simple past and past participle menaced) (transitive, intransitive)

1. To make threats against (someone); to intimidate.

   to menace a country with war

   • Shakespeare

     My master […] did menace me with death.

2. To threaten (an evil to be inflicted).
   • Shakespeare

     By oath he menaced / Revenge upon the cardinal.

3. To endanger (someone or something); to imperil or jeopardize.

Translations

to make threats against, to intimidate

• Finnish: uhkailla (fi), pelotella (fi)

• Maori: whakahakahaka

References

• “menace, v.” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2nd Ed.; 1989]

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French

Etymology

From Latin minācia < minax.

Pronunciation

• audio

  (file)

Noun

menace f (plural menaces)

1. threat

Related terms

• menacer

Verb

menace

1. first-person singular present indicative of menacer
2. third-person singular present indicative of menacer
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of menacer
4. first-person singular present subjunctive of menacer
5. second-person singular imperative of menacer

Further reading

• “menace” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).