What does hazard mean?
A hazard is a danger, risk, or obstacle that has the potential to cause harm, injury, loss, or serious difficulty. The word is especially useful when identifying a specific source of danger, as in safety hazard, fire hazard, or health hazard, though it can also refer more generally to the chance of an adverse outcome. Hazard is related in meaning to risk, but it often places greater emphasis on what could cause harm, while risk focuses more directly on the possibility of the outcome itself. In golf and a few other specialized contexts, a hazard is an obstacle or dangerous feature of a course. As a verb, hazard is uncommon and formal: it can mean to expose something to danger or to attempt something with the possibility of serious consequences. The word became especially prominent in safety-related language because it names a potential danger clearly enough to be assessed, warned about, and prevented.
A danger, risk, source of harm, or obstacle that may cause injury, loss, or difficulty.
"The construction site was fenced off because it was a hazard to passers-by."
Common in general, professional, legal, and safety-related language. The sense is broader than physical danger and can include legal, financial, or environmental threats.
To expose something to danger or risk, or to attempt something despite the possibility of adverse consequences.
"The company warned employees not to hazard the damaged equipment."
Formal and uncommon; chiefly encountered in legal, literary, or deliberately emphatic contexts.
The standard plural of the noun, used for individual dangers, risks, or obstacles.
"The inspection identified several hazards in the building."
Hazard began as a word for pure chance: its ancestors meant a lot, fortune, or opportunity—not yet danger.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does hazard come from?
Hazard entered Middle English from Middle French hasard, a word meaning chance, fortune, or luck. The French word came through Spanish azar, from Arabic al-ẓahr, ultimately associated with Persian zahr, meaning lot or fortune. Its sense developed from contingency and risk toward the modern idea of something that endangers people or causes harm.
Related word forms
How hazard is actually used
As a noun, hazard is standard in both formal and informal contexts and is especially common in discussions of safety, health, law, and the environment. It often emphasizes a concrete source of possible harm, whereas risk can more neutrally refer to the probability of an outcome. The verb is formal and uncommon, often suggesting deliberate exposure to danger.
Easily confused with hazard
A hazard is a noun naming a danger or risk, while hazardous is an adjective describing something that presents danger.