plural hazards
1
: a source of danger
hazards on the roadway
2
b
: a chance event : accident
… looked like a fugitive, who had escaped from something in clothes caught up at hazard.—
Willa Cather
Willa Cather3
hazards plural
: special lights on a vehicle that flash on and off and are used to warn other drivers (as when the vehicle is not working properly) : hazard lights
If you do break down or crash, immediately turn on your hazards.—Shape
ShapeDrivers should also turn off their hazards when signaling to exit the highway.—John Cichowski
John Cichowski4
: a golf-course obstacle (such as a bunker or a pond)
5
: a game of chance like craps played with two dice
6
obsolete
: stake sense 3a
hazarded; hazarding; hazards
: to offer or present at a risk : venture
hazard a guess as to the outcome
Did you know?
At first hazard was a game of chance played with dice. The English word comes from medieval French, in which the game was called hasard. This French word was probably borrowed from Arabic az-zahr, meaning “the dice” or “one of the dice.” The game was borrowed from the French by the English, and within a few centuries what had been a chance taken on the outcome of a throw of the dice could be any venture or risk. Now “chance” or “venture” and “risk” or “peril” are the usual meanings of hazard. The verb hazard emerged in the 16th century.
Synonyms
Examples of hazard in a Sentence
Noun
the tumbledown old barn was considered a fire hazard
it was only by hazard and good fortune that we found our way back to the trail
Verb
His friend asked him to hazard a small sum in a business venture.
just so the tourists could see the sea lions up close, the captain needlessly hazarded his ship
Recent Examples on the WebClaire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2024
Climate & Environment As climate hazards converge, more Californians are living in harm’s way
Feb. 3, 2024
Ultimately, funding for the projects outlined in the report will come from taxpayers, whether at the municipal, state or federal level, Wiles said.
—Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Storm damage:See a rolling report of hazards around Indiana
Indiana tornado watch issued for 6 counties
A tornado watch has been issued by NWS until noon ET for the following Indiana counties:
Clark
Crawford
Dubois
Floyd
Harrison
Perry
What's the weather today in Indiana?
—Chris Sims, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Apr. 2024
These questions catch serious risks to kids’ health like bullying and abuse but leave the routine hazards of living — appropriately — intact for kids to learn on.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 31 Mar. 2024
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for example, uses the tool to analyze weather hazards, while examiners at the Patent and Trademark Office employ AI tools in judging new patent applications.
—Rocio Fabbro, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
The hazard for people around Grindavík hasn't changed that much.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
Multiple weather hazards linger from Friday’s severe weather that thrust a pause button on DJs spinning at downtown Miami’s Ultra Music Festival, halted Miami-Dade’s Youth Fair near FIU for the day and led to the cancellation of a session at the 2024 Miami Open inside Hard Rock Stadium.
—Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2024
However, Glendale will take complaints related to health and safety hazards.
—The Arizona Republic, 25 Mar. 2024
John Bacon, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2024
Unfortunately, none of the officials present hazarded a launch date.
—Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 23 June 2023
Still, newspapers had hazarded many guesses as to his real identity.
—Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Oct. 2023
Goodman would not hazard a guess on the state of SAG-AFTRA’s negotiations, which began June 7.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 21 June 2023
Food inflation is already significant, noted Daniel Sumner, a professor of agricultural and resource economics at UC Davis, and now prices will rise more, though Sumner and other analysts said there were simply too many factors to hazard a guess on how much.
—Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, 9 May 2023
Want to hazard a guess as to Trump’s lead over DeSantis (routinely second in these surveys)?
—Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 20 Feb. 2023
Yi also hazards a few variations that are more systematic.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2023
Care to hazard a guess who picked which?
—Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 10 June 2022
Noun
Their lithium-ion batteries pose a fire hazard to equipment and MRF employees.
—Claire Reid, Journal Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2024
Climate & Environment As climate hazards converge, more Californians are living in harm’s way
Feb. 3, 2024
Ultimately, funding for the projects outlined in the report will come from taxpayers, whether at the municipal, state or federal level, Wiles said.
—Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2024
Storm damage:See a rolling report of hazards around Indiana
Indiana tornado watch issued for 6 counties
A tornado watch has been issued by NWS until noon ET for the following Indiana counties:
Clark
Crawford
Dubois
Floyd
Harrison
Perry
What's the weather today in Indiana?
—Chris Sims, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Apr. 2024
These questions catch serious risks to kids’ health like bullying and abuse but leave the routine hazards of living — appropriately — intact for kids to learn on.
—Carolyn Hax, Washington Post, 31 Mar. 2024
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for example, uses the tool to analyze weather hazards, while examiners at the Patent and Trademark Office employ AI tools in judging new patent applications.
—Rocio Fabbro, Quartz, 28 Mar. 2024
The hazard for people around Grindavík hasn't changed that much.
—Erik Klemetti, Discover Magazine, 27 Mar. 2024
Multiple weather hazards linger from Friday’s severe weather that thrust a pause button on DJs spinning at downtown Miami’s Ultra Music Festival, halted Miami-Dade’s Youth Fair near FIU for the day and led to the cancellation of a session at the 2024 Miami Open inside Hard Rock Stadium.
—Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2024
However, Glendale will take complaints related to health and safety hazards.
—The Arizona Republic, 25 Mar. 2024
Verb
Rebuilding Gaza may cost $15B just for housing, official says
The enormous toll of the Israeli military campaign in Gaza won't be known until well after the war is over, but the chairman of the Palestine Investment Fund is willing to hazard a monetary guess: at least $15 billion.
—John Bacon, USA TODAY, 17 Jan. 2024
Unfortunately, none of the officials present hazarded a launch date.
—Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 23 June 2023
Still, newspapers had hazarded many guesses as to his real identity.
—Teresa Nowakowski, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Oct. 2023
Goodman would not hazard a guess on the state of SAG-AFTRA’s negotiations, which began June 7.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 21 June 2023
Food inflation is already significant, noted Daniel Sumner, a professor of agricultural and resource economics at UC Davis, and now prices will rise more, though Sumner and other analysts said there were simply too many factors to hazard a guess on how much.
—Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, 9 May 2023
Want to hazard a guess as to Trump’s lead over DeSantis (routinely second in these surveys)?
—Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 20 Feb. 2023
Yi also hazards a few variations that are more systematic.
—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post, 17 Feb. 2023
Care to hazard a guess who picked which?
—Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 10 June 2022
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hazard.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near hazard
Cite this Entry
“Hazard.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hazard. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hazard
1 of 2 noun
haz·ard
ˈhaz-ərd 
1
: a game of chance played with two dice
3
: a source of danger
4
: an obstacle on a golf course
hazard
2 of 2 verb
: venture entry 1 sense 1, risk
hazard a guess
Etymology
Noun
Middle English hazard "game of chance," from early French hasard (same meaning), from Arabic az-zahr "the die (one of the dice)"
Word Origin
Hazard was at first a game of chance played with dice. The English word comes from an early form of French, in which the game was called hasard. This French word was probably borrowed during the time of the Crusades from Arabic az-zahr, meaning "the die (one of the dice)." The game was borrowed from the French by the English, and within a few centuries, what had been a chance taken on the outcome of a throw of the dice could be any venture or risk. Now "chance" or "venture" and "risk" or "peril" are the usual meanings of hazard.
Legal Definition
hazard
noun
haz·ard
ˈha-zərd
: a condition that tends to create or increase the possibility of loss
—used especially in insurance law
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