Dire
Dire adjective - Being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come.
Usage example: a dire forecast of a plunge in stock prices
Threatening is a synonym for dire in sinister topic. In some cases you can use "Threatening" instead an adjective "Dire", when it comes to topics like ominous.
Threatening
Threatening adjective - Being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come.
Usage example: a threatening silence followed the loud thump in the adjoining motel room
Dire is a synonym for threatening in sinister topic. Sometimes you can use "Dire" instead an adjective "Threatening", if it concerns topics such as ominous, menacing.
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
Both words in one sentence
- Fortunately, Russell Franklin is well prepared for this situation, as he has survived a similar dire life-threatening incident before when he was stranded on top of a mountain range.
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Of course, when the "perp" has dire reason to avoid sunlight, this is more threatening than usual.
Source: Webcomic / Oglaf -
Dr Allison Mann in Y: The Last Man spends much of her time either belittling Yorick or threatening his pet monkey with dire fates.
Source: Dr. Jerk aka: Doctor Jerk
Cite this Source
Threatening and Dire. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/threatening
Dire & Threatening. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/threatening>.
Threatening or Dire. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/dire/threatening.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "dire" and "threatening" have occurred on timeline