Threat in Different Languages
Discover 'Threat' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'threat' carries a significant weight, signifying danger, risk, or potential harm. Its cultural importance is evident in various contexts, from literature to film, where it serves as a catalyst for action and conflict. Understanding the translation of 'threat' in different languages can provide valuable insights into how different cultures perceive and address potential dangers.
For instance, in Spanish, 'threat' translates to 'amenaza,' while in French, it becomes 'menace.' In German, 'threat' is translated as 'Drohung,' and in Japanese, it is '脅迫' (kyouhaku). These translations not only reflect linguistic differences but also cultural nuances in how various societies view and respond to potential threats.
Moreover, knowing the translation of 'threat' in different languages can be practical in international communication, diplomacy, and business negotiations. By acknowledging and addressing potential threats, we can build stronger relationships, prevent conflicts, and promote mutual understanding.
In the following list, you will find the translations of 'threat' in various languages, shedding light on the cultural significance and importance of this powerful word.
Threat
Threat in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | bedreiging | ||
| The word 'bedreiging' is etymologically related to 'bedragen', which means 'to cheat or trick', suggesting that threats were historically seen as underhanded and deceptive actions. | |||
| Amharic | ማስፈራሪያ | ||
| Hausa | barazana | ||
| The Hausa word "barazana" can also mean "challenge" or "declaration of war". | |||
| Igbo | iyi egwu | ||
| The Igbo word "iyi egwu" has several interpretations depending on the context: it can mean both "threat" or "a trap, a snare, an ambush, a place or thing of misfortune"} | |||
| Malagasy | fandrahonana | ||
| The word "fandrahonana" is derived from the verb "mandrahona" which means "to speak harshly" or "to make a threat." | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuopseza | ||
| The word "kuopseza" in Nyanja (Chichewa) can also mean "to threaten" or "to intimidate". | |||
| Shona | kutyisidzira | ||
| The word 'kutyisidzira' shares its root with the verb 'kutisidzira', which means 'to desire strongly' or 'to long for'. This connection suggests that threats may stem from unmet desires or a lack of fulfillment. | |||
| Somali | hanjabaad | ||
| The word 'hanjabaad' is derived from the Arabic word 'hajaba', meaning 'to prevent' or 'to obstruct'. | |||
| Sesotho | tshoso | ||
| The Sesotho word "tshoso" is derived from the verb "tshosa," which means "to threaten" or "to intimidate." | |||
| Swahili | tishio | ||
| "Tishio" has a dual meaning in Swahili, also referring to a "warning" | |||
| Xhosa | isoyikiso | ||
| In certain contexts, 'isoyikiso' can also connote a 'warning'. | |||
| Yoruba | irokeke | ||
| "Okeke" originally referred to an arrow that may or may not have a head | |||
| Zulu | usongo | ||
| In Zulu, "usongo" also refers to a type of magical potion used in traditional healing and witchcraft | |||
| Bambara | lasiranli | ||
| Ewe | ŋᴐdzidodo | ||
| Kinyarwanda | iterabwoba | ||
| Lingala | likama | ||
| Luganda | entiisa | ||
| Sepedi | matšhošetši | ||
| Twi (Akan) | ahunahuna | ||
Threat in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | التهديد | ||
| The word "التهديد" can also mean "promise" or "vow" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | אִיוּם | ||
| אִיוּם is derived from the verb אוּם, meaning to speak out or threaten. | |||
| Pashto | ګواښ | ||
| "ګواښ" may also refer to a "threat" or "danger" in Pashto. | |||
| Arabic | التهديد | ||
| The word "التهديد" can also mean "promise" or "vow" in Arabic. | |||
Threat in Western European Languages
| Albanian | kërcënim | ||
| "Kërcënim" traces its roots to the Proto-Albanian word "kërcë", meaning "danger" or "risk," and is related to the word "kjerrë", meaning "to roar" or "to growl." | |||
| Basque | mehatxua | ||
| The word "mehatxua" can also mean "warning" or "caution" in Basque. | |||
| Catalan | amenaça | ||
| The Catalan word "amenaça" comes from the Latin word "minaciae", meaning "threats" or "menaces". | |||
| Croatian | prijetnja | ||
| "Prijetnja" derives from the Croatian verb "prijetiti", originally meaning "to approach" or "to draw near". | |||
| Danish | trussel | ||
| In Danish, the word "trussel" can also mean "threat"} | |||
| Dutch | bedreiging | ||
| The word "bedreiging" is derived from the Old Dutch word "bedragen," meaning "to lie in wait" or "to attack." | |||
| English | threat | ||
| The word 'threat' is ultimately derived from the Greek word tropos, meaning 'turn' or 'direction', and is related to the words 'trope' and 'strophe'. | |||
| French | menace | ||
| In French, "menacer" also means "to threaten", and "menace" can mean both "threat" and "harbinger." | |||
| Frisian | bedriging | ||
| The Frisian word "bedriging" is derived from the Old Frisian word "bedriuga", meaning "deceit" or "fraud". | |||
| Galician | ameaza | ||
| The word "ameaza" in Galician may derive from Latin "minacia" or "minax" (threatening) but also means "promise". | |||
| German | drohung | ||
| In the 15th century, a "Drohung" was also a 'promise of something pleasant'. | |||
| Icelandic | ógn | ||
| In Icelandic, "ógn" can also mean a "warning" or a "sign of danger". | |||
| Irish | bagairt | ||
| The word "bagairt" in Irish is derived from the Old Irish word "bacart," meaning "danger" or "peril." | |||
| Italian | minaccia | ||
| The word "minaccia" originated from the Late Latin "minaciae," meaning "violent gestures". | |||
| Luxembourgish | bedrohung | ||
| In Luxembourgish, "Bedrohung" can also refer to a legal offense involving threats of violence or harm. | |||
| Maltese | theddida | ||
| The word "theddida" in Maltese also means "warning" or "monition". | |||
| Norwegian | trussel | ||
| The Norwegian word "trussel" can also mean "a bundle of hay" or "a wooden frame for supporting a roof". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | ameaça | ||
| The word "ameaça" can also mean "promise" when used with the preposition "de" in Portuguese. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | bagairt | ||
| In early Scottish Gaelic, "bagairt'' referred to threats of bodily harm, whereas threats of harm by witchcraft were "goid.'' | |||
| Spanish | amenaza | ||
| In Spanish, the word "amenaza" can also mean "promise" or "hope", and derives from the Latin "minaciae", meaning "threats". | |||
| Swedish | hot | ||
| In Swedish, "hot" can also refer to a prison sentence. | |||
| Welsh | bygythiad | ||
| The Welsh word "bygythiad" can also mean "menace" or "intimidation." | |||
Threat in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | пагроза | ||
| "Пагроза" is derived from the Slavic root "grati", meaning "to shout". | |||
| Bosnian | prijetnja | ||
| "prijetnja" means 'threat' in English and shares its ultimate root word 'precor' with 'precarious', 'deprecate', and 'pray' | |||
| Bulgarian | заплаха | ||
| The Bulgarian word "заплаха" can also refer to a prophecy or a sign of something to come. | |||
| Czech | ohrožení | ||
| "Ohrožení" can also mean "endangerment" or "threat to life or health." | |||
| Estonian | oht | ||
| The Estonian word "oht" has Germanic roots and is related to the English word "hate". | |||
| Finnish | uhka | ||
| The word 'uhka' also means a 'sacrifice' in ancient Finnish, and it is related to the word 'uhr' meaning sacrifice in German. | |||
| Hungarian | fenyegetés | ||
| Fenyegetés is a Hungarian word that can also mean "intimidation" or "coercion". | |||
| Latvian | draudi | ||
| Alternate meanings of "draudi" include prohibition, ban, or warning. | |||
| Lithuanian | grėsmė | ||
| "Grėsmė" can sometimes mean "risk" in Lithuanian, while in Polish the related word "groźba" means "threat", not "risk". | |||
| Macedonian | закана | ||
| In Macedonian, the word 'закана' can also refer to 'a challenge', or 'a threat'. | |||
| Polish | zagrożenie | ||
| The etymology of "zagrożenie" suggests its original meaning was not limited to threat, but also included the concept of "burden" | |||
| Romanian | amenințare | ||
| The word "amenințare" in Romanian derives from the Latin "minari" meaning "to threaten" or "to indicate a threat". | |||
| Russian | угроза | ||
| The word "угроза" (threat) in Russian can also trace its roots to the Old Russian word "угроза" (anger, wrath), possibly related to the word "гроза" (thunderstorm). | |||
| Serbian | претња | ||
| The word "pretnja" derives from the Proto-Slavic root *prьtъ, meaning "to push" or "to press". It can also refer to a "burden" or "obligation". | |||
| Slovak | hrozba | ||
| The Slovak word "hrozba" comes from the Proto-Slavic word "grozъ", meaning either "terror" or "thunderstorm". | |||
| Slovenian | grožnja | ||
| The word grožnja is derived from the Proto-Slavic word groziti, which means "to threaten" or "to make a threat." | |||
| Ukrainian | загроза | ||
| The Ukrainian word "загроза" ultimately derives from the Proto-Slavic word *gordъ, meaning "pride", "arrogance", or "haughtiness". | |||
Threat in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | হুমকি | ||
| "হুমকি" (threat) comes from the Arabic "humak", meaning "whisper" or "secret talk". | |||
| Gujarati | ધમકી | ||
| The word "ધમકી" is also used in Gujarati to refer to "pressure" or "coercion" | |||
| Hindi | धमकी | ||
| The Hindi word "धमकी" (threat) derives from the Sanskrit root "धम", meaning "to sound," suggesting a verbal or implied threat. | |||
| Kannada | ಬೆದರಿಕೆ | ||
| The word "ಬೆದರಿಕೆ" also refers to a verbal challenge or warning given to someone. | |||
| Malayalam | ഭീഷണി | ||
| The word "ഭീഷണി" is derived from the Sanskrit word "भीषण" which means "terrible" or "frightening". | |||
| Marathi | धोका | ||
| The Marathi word "धोका" also has meanings of "misfortune", "trouble", and "cheat". | |||
| Nepali | खतरा | ||
| 'Khatra' derives from Persian 'Khatar' meaning 'danger' or 'fear' | |||
| Punjabi | ਧਮਕੀ | ||
| The word "ਧਮਕੀ" is likely derived from the Sanskrit word "धृति" (dhriti), meaning "firmness" or "steadfastness". It can also refer to "a sound of a loud impact" or "a warning". | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | තර්ජනයක් | ||
| The Sinhala word "තර්ජනයක්" has several Sanskrit roots and alternate meanings including "tremble", "agitation" and "trepidation". | |||
| Tamil | அச்சுறுத்தல் | ||
| The Tamil word "அச்சுறுத்தல்" also refers to "a prophecy" or "a prediction with an ominous overtone". | |||
| Telugu | ముప్పు | ||
| The word "ముప్పు" can also refer to a "difficulty" or a "disaster". | |||
| Urdu | خطرہ | ||
| The word "خطرہ" also means "danger" or "risk" in Urdu. | |||
Threat in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 威胁 | ||
| "威胁"在中文中还可指“威胁性”或“威胁行为”。 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 威脅 | ||
| 威脅 also means 'deter' or 'intimidate' | |||
| Japanese | 脅威 | ||
| The word "脅威" (kyōi) also means "pressure" or "intimidation." | |||
| Korean | 위협 | ||
| The word 위협 (wihyeop) in Korean means "threat" but also has the alternate meaning of "warning" or "caution." | |||
| Mongolian | заналхийлэл | ||
| The word "заналхийлэл" is derived from the verb "занах" (to take or seize), and its alternate meaning is "plunder". | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ခြိမ်းခြောက်မှု | ||
Threat in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | ancaman | ||
| The word "ancaman" in Indonesian is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word *ancaŋ, meaning "to threaten" or "to be afraid". | |||
| Javanese | ancaman | ||
| Ancaman can also mean "obstacle" in Javanese. | |||
| Khmer | ការគំរាមកំហែង | ||
| Lao | ໄພຂົ່ມຂູ່ | ||
| Malay | ancaman | ||
| The word "ancaman" is derived from the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian root "*caŋa" meaning "to threaten or frighten". | |||
| Thai | ภัยคุกคาม | ||
| The word "ภัยคุกคาม" shares roots with the word "ข่มขู่" meaning "to threaten". | |||
| Vietnamese | mối đe dọa | ||
| "Mối đe dọa" derives from "mối" (termite) and "đe dọa" (to threaten), denoting the insidious and persistent nature of a threat. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pagbabanta | ||
Threat in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | təhdid | ||
| The word 'təhdid' is derived from the Arabic word 'taḥdīd', which originally meant 'definition', 'demarcation', or 'limitation'. | |||
| Kazakh | қауіп-қатер | ||
| 'Қауіп' means 'danger' and 'қатер' means 'risk' (loanword from Persian), but both words are used to translate the English word 'threat'. | |||
| Kyrgyz | коркунуч | ||
| Tajik | таҳдид | ||
| The word "таҳдид" can also mean "warning" or "intimidation". | |||
| Turkmen | howp | ||
| Uzbek | tahdid | ||
| In Farsi, "tahdid" means "to circumscribe" or "to limit". | |||
| Uyghur | تەھدىت | ||
Threat in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hoʻoweliweli | ||
| "Hoʻoweliweli" in Hawaiian also refers to a "dreadful experience" or a "horrible thing." | |||
| Maori | whakawehi | ||
| In some contexts, "whakawehi" can also mean "to make afraid" or "to cause fear". | |||
| Samoan | faʻamataʻu | ||
| In Samoa, the word "faʻamataʻu" can also mean "to warn". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | pananakot | ||
| "Pananakot" also refers to an ominous omen or premonition. | |||
Threat in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | asxarayawi | ||
| Guarani | ja'o | ||
Threat in International Languages
| Esperanto | minaco | ||
| Latin | periculum | ||
| "Periculum" also denotes "experiment", as it is the result of a trial or proof. | |||
Threat in Others Languages
| Greek | απειλή | ||
| The word "απειλή" in Greek also means "promise" or "warning", highlighting the double-edged nature of such a statement. | |||
| Hmong | kev hem thawj | ||
| The Hmong word "kev hem thawj" also means "danger" or "hazard". | |||
| Kurdish | tirsavêtinî | ||
| The word "tirsavêtinî" is also used to mean "fear" or "dread" | |||
| Turkish | tehdit | ||
| The word "tehdit" derives from the Persian word "ta'did" meaning "warning", "caution" or "admonition". | |||
| Xhosa | isoyikiso | ||
| In certain contexts, 'isoyikiso' can also connote a 'warning'. | |||
| Yiddish | סאַקאָנע | ||
| The Yiddish word "סאַקאָנע" (sakone) is derived from the Hebrew word "סכנה" (sakana), meaning "danger" or "risk." | |||
| Zulu | usongo | ||
| In Zulu, "usongo" also refers to a type of magical potion used in traditional healing and witchcraft | |||
| Assamese | ভাবুকি | ||
| Aymara | asxarayawi | ||
| Bhojpuri | धमकी | ||
| Dhivehi | ބިރުދެއްކުން | ||
| Dogri | खतरा | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | pagbabanta | ||
| Guarani | ja'o | ||
| Ilocano | butngen | ||
| Krio | trɛtin | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | هەڕەشە | ||
| Maithili | धमकी | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯀꯤꯍꯟꯕ | ||
| Mizo | vau | ||
| Oromo | balaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଧମକ | ||
| Quechua | manchachiy | ||
| Sanskrit | तर्जन | ||
| Tatar | куркыныч | ||
| Tigrinya | ምፍርራሕ | ||
| Tsonga | nxungeto | ||