hazard

Pluralhazards (some meanings)

Formshazards, hazarding, hazarded

1. 1
   noununcountable

   The chance that something harmful or dangerous could happen to you.

   Like walking near the edge of a cliff: there is a chance of getting hurt.

   Climbing the cliff in the rain put them in real hazard.

   There is little hazard in asking a simple question.

   Similardanger, peril, risk, jeopardy

   Oppositesafety, security

   Note
2. 2
   nouncountable

   Something that could cause harm or danger, like a slippery floor or a sharp edge.

   Like a banana peel left on the floor: it can make someone slip and fall.

   A wet floor is a hazard in any kitchen.

   The broken step was a hazard for everyone using the stairs.

   Similardanger, risk, menace, threat, pitfall

3. 3
   verbtransitive

   To risk something, or to put it in danger by what you do.

   Like betting your lunch money on a game you might lose.

   He did not want to hazard his savings on a risky deal.

   You should not hazard your health for a few extra dollars.

   Similarrisk, jeopardize, endanger, gamble, stake

   Oppositeprotect, safeguard

   Note
4. 4
   verbtransitive

   To take a risk, or to offer a guess that might be wrong.

   Like guessing how many candies are in a jar: you might be wrong.

   I will hazard a guess about the answer.

   Would you hazard a try at the puzzle?

   Similarventure, offer, risk, attempt, make

   Note
5. 5
   nouncountable

   A sand pit or pool of water on a golf course that makes play harder.

   Like a puddle in the middle of a path that you must go around.

   Her ball rolled into the hazard beside the green.

   He took an extra shot to escape the hazard near the fairway.

   Note
6. 6
   nouncountable

   Something on the road, like a parked car or a child, that a driver must slow down or steer to avoid.

   Like seeing a fallen branch ahead and knowing you must steer around it.

   The driver braked when a hazard appeared in the road ahead.

   A child running out is a serious hazard for any driver.

   Similardanger, risk, obstacle

   Note
7. 7
   nouncountable

   A problem in a computer chip when the next step cannot run in time, which can cause wrong results.

   Like a worker waiting for a part that has not arrived yet, holding up the whole line.

   The chip slowed down because of a hazard in the pipeline.

   Engineers found a hazard that made the processor give wrong answers.

   Note
8. 8
   nouncountable

   In billiards, the act of knocking a ball into a pocket, either the target ball or your own.

   Like sinking a ball in pool: you knock it into a pocket.

   He scored with a clean hazard into the corner pocket.

   A lucky hazard won her the frame.

   Similarpot

   Note
9. 9
   nounhistoricaluncountable

   An old dice game played for money, popular long ago.

   Like rolling dice for money with friends, the way people did long ago.

   The men spent the evening playing hazard for small coins.

   [T]here's Harry diets himself—for gaming and is now under a hazard Regimen.

   1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for ScandalHere, hazard refers to a dice game played for money.

   Note
10. 10
    noununcountable

    Pure chance or luck, with no plan behind it.

    Like picking a card without looking: whatever you get is just luck.

    Their meeting happened by pure hazard, not by plan.

    He left the outcome to hazard and hoped for the best.

    Similarchance, luck, accident, fortune, coincidence

    Oppositedesign

    Note
11. 11
    nounusually singular

    In tennis, the side of the court where the served ball lands.

    Like the box on the other side of a net where a serve must land.

    The server aimed deep into the hazard.

    Her return landed just inside the hazard.

    Note

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