Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “threaten” come from?

Threaten comes from Middle English þreaten, a verb of uncertain ultimate origin whose earliest sense remains unknown.

threaten (English): To make a threat against someone; to use threats;...

Definitions

  1. To make a threat against someone; to use threats;...

Ancestry of “threaten”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishþreten—
2Old Englishþrēatianto threaten, to push; to press, oppress, repress,...
3Proto-Indo-Europeantrewd-to push, to thrust

Words derived from “threaten”

  • threatening
  • threateningly
  • nonthreatening
  • unthreatening
  • threatener
  • threateneth
  • threatenest
  • unthreateningly
  • nonthreateningly
  • threatenable
  • threateningness
  • unthreatenable
Every word from Proto-Indo-European trewd- →