peril
The threat of serious danger.
peril in a sentence
- The sailors knew they were in peril when the storm snapped the mast.
- The fairy warned the travellers of the peril lurking in the dark forest.
Try an 11+ style question
Verbal reasoning papers often ask about a word like this.
Which word is closest in meaning to peril?
- Asecurity
- Bprotection
- Cdanger
- Dsafety
Show the answer
C: danger. The other three mean the opposite of peril.
Which word is most nearly opposite in meaning to peril?
- Adanger
- Bsafety
- Cthreat
- Drisk
Show the answer
B: safety. The other three mean nearly the same as peril.
Words that mean something similar
danger, risk, threat
Words that mean the opposite
safety, security, protection
More words about places & settings
- perilous: Very dangerous.
- picturesque: Pretty enough to be in a painting or on a postcard.
- precarious: Not safe or steady, and likely to fall or fail at any moment.
- quaint: Charming in an old-fashioned way.
- ravine: A deep, narrow valley with steep sides.
- reek: To smell very strongly and unpleasantly.
- refuge: A safe place to shelter from danger.
- remote: Far away from towns and hard to reach.
More words to explore
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test