risks

Noun

risk (countable and uncountable, plural risks)

1. (uncountable) The probability of a negative outcome to a decision or event.
   • There is risk of being brutalized, arrested, imprisoned and tortured, all because I want you to know the truth about this matter.
2. (uncountable) The magnitude of possible loss consequent to a decision or event.
   • Will they find the prospect of greater risk a cause for concern, rather than a gift from the right?2004 April 23, “American Families at Risk”, in The American Prospect
3. (uncountable) The potential negative effect of an event, determined by multiplying the likelihood of the event occurring with its magnitude should it occur.
   • If there is a 25% chance of running over schedule, costing you a $100 out of your own pocket, that might be a risk you are willing to take. But if you have a 5% chance of running overschedule, knowing that there is a $10,000 penalty, you might be less willing to take that risk.2002, Decisioneering Inc website, What is risk? read at http://www.decisioneering.com/risk-analysis.html on 14 May 2006
4. (countable) A possible adverse event or outcome.
   • the imminent and constant risk of assassination, a risk which has shaken very strong nerves1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter VII, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and...

   Synonyms:

   danger, peril, hazard

   1. A type of adverse event covered under an insurance policy.
5. (countable) A thing (from the perspective of how likely or unlikely it is to cause an adverse effect).
   • That man is going to be a big risk once he's out of prison.

See all 13 meanings of risk