threatened

adjective

threat·​ened ˈthre-tᵊnd How to pronounce threatened (audio)
: having an uncertain chance of continued survival
a threatened species
specifically : likely to become an endangered species

Examples of threatened in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Manatees are classified by the federal government as a threatened species. News Service Of Florida, The Orlando Sentinel, 19 May 2025 In 2015, WildEarth Guardians, an environmental nonprofit group, petitioned the FWS to list Joshua trees as a threatened species, but a second 2023 species status assessment by the FWS found that neither Joshua tree species -- Yucca brevifolia and Yucca jaegeriana -- requires protections. Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 14 May 2025 Liley, the agency official, said the new money, along with a separate conservation fund established in 2023, will more than double the state’s investment in helping threatened species. Tribune News Service, Boston Herald, 11 May 2025 Canada has hit back with tariffs on $60 billion of American goods, with more threatened, while some provincial leaders have acted to remove U.S. alcohol from sale. Paul Du Quenoy, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for threatened

Word History

First Known Use

1960, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of threatened was in 1960

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Cite this Entry

“Threatened.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/threatened. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.

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