as in endangers
to place in danger
a single mistake could imperil the lives of everyone involved in the military operation
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Recent Examples of imperils
Then the studio structured trailers and marketing around an unspecified, unspeakable disclosure by Zendaya’s character that derails the wedding plans (and imperils the characters’ romantic union) to stoke maximum curiosity.
—
Chris Lee, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
Russia hopes to reap the benefits of an extended Middle East war, even as the conflict imperils one of its allies.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 8 Mar. 2026
The ruling immediately imperils the cornerstone of the administration’s economic strategy, transforming America’s negotiator-in-chief into a leader stripped of his most potent leverage.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 20 Feb. 2026
The move imperils public interest reporting and will have ramifications far beyond this specific case.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 21 Jan. 2026
Smith vowed to consider introducing legislation after a Tampa Bay Times investigation last year revealed how pollution imperils hundreds of Florida waterways, including the Indian River Lagoon, where manatees starved to death when seagrass disappeared.
—Bethany Barnes, Miami Herald, 13 Jan. 2026
In Brazil, wildcat gold mining degrades the Amazon rainforest and imperils Indigenous groups.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 15 Oct. 2025
Chris Lee, Vulture, 2 Apr. 2026
Russia hopes to reap the benefits of an extended Middle East war, even as the conflict imperils one of its allies.
—J.d. Capelouto, semafor.com, 8 Mar. 2026
The ruling immediately imperils the cornerstone of the administration’s economic strategy, transforming America’s negotiator-in-chief into a leader stripped of his most potent leverage.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 20 Feb. 2026
The move imperils public interest reporting and will have ramifications far beyond this specific case.
—Ted Johnson, Deadline, 21 Jan. 2026
Smith vowed to consider introducing legislation after a Tampa Bay Times investigation last year revealed how pollution imperils hundreds of Florida waterways, including the Indian River Lagoon, where manatees starved to death when seagrass disappeared.
—Bethany Barnes, Miami Herald, 13 Jan. 2026
In Brazil, wildcat gold mining degrades the Amazon rainforest and imperils Indigenous groups.
—Charlie Campbell, Time, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for imperils
Verb
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The teaser also reveals that the titular character has a huge company, which endangers millions with a drilling operation that goes too far.—
Bailey Richards,
PEOPLE,
15 Apr. 2026
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Someone this unstable, whose behavior endangers the nation, should not remain in office.—
Sara Tenenbaum,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Forty years later, Moscow is once again placing Chornobyl at immense risk — this time through a violent war of aggression that threatens to bring nuclear catastrophe back to Ukraine and Europe.—
Benjamin Mack-Jackson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Apr. 2026
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But the consequences of a destabilized Mali, compounded by the wider fallout from the Iran war, are unlikely to stop at its borders and threatens to deepen a deteriorating security crisis across one of the world’s most volatile regions.—
Ulf Laessing,
semafor.com,
30 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Imperils.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/imperils. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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