jeopardize
verb
Did you know?
Jeopardize Has a Controversial History
It may be hard to believe that jeopardize was once controversial, but in 1870 a grammarian called it "a foolish and intolerable word," a view shared by many 19th-century critics. The preferred word was jeopard, which first appeared in print in the 14th century. (The upstart jeopardize didn't arrive until the late 16th century.) In 1828, Noah Webster himself declared jeopardize to be "a modern word, used by respectable writers in America, but synonymous with jeopard, and therefore useless." Unfortunately for the champions of jeopard, jeopardize is now much more popular.
Synonyms
Examples of jeopardize in a Sentence
Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 22 Apr. 2024
The pay gap makes retirement harder for women A broadly bearish market would jeopardize even relatively well prepared peak boomers, according to the research.
—Paolo Confino, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for jeopardize 
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jeopardize.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to jeopardize
Dictionary Entries Near jeopardize
Cite this Entry
“Jeopardize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jeopardize. Accessed 3 May. 2024.
Copy Citation
Share