Library / English Dictionary

ADVENTURE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful)

Synonyms:

adventure; dangerous undertaking; escapade; risky venture

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("adventure" is a kind of...):

labor; project; task; undertaking (any piece of work that is undertaken or attempted)

Derivation:

adventure (take a risk in the hope of a favorable outcome)

adventure (put at risk)

adventurer (a person who enjoys taking risks)

adventurer (someone who travels into little known regions (especially for some scientific purpose))

adventuristic (of or pertaining to adventurism)

adventurous (willing to undertake or seeking out new and daring enterprises)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Take a risk in the hope of a favorable outcome

Example:

When you buy these stocks you are gambling

Synonyms:

adventure; chance; gamble; hazard; risk; run a risk; take a chance; take chances

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "adventure" is one way to...):

assay; attempt; essay; seek; try (make an effort or attempt)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "adventure"):

go for broke (risk everything in one big effort)

luck it; luck through (act by relying on one's luck)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s that CLAUSE

Derivation:

adventure (a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful))

adventurer (a person who enjoys taking risks)

adventurer (someone who travels into little known regions (especially for some scientific purpose))

Sense 2

Meaning:

Put at risk

Example:

I will stake my good reputation for this

Synonyms:

adventure; hazard; jeopardize; stake; venture

Classified under:

Verbs of political and social activities and events

Hypernyms (to "adventure" is one way to...):

lay on the line; put on the line; risk (expose to a chance of loss or damage)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

adventure (a wild and exciting undertaking (not necessarily lawful))

adventurer (a person who enjoys taking risks)

Credits

 Context examples: 

A question about whether an individual has or had been living a wonderful adventure.

(Has Living Been a Wonderful Adventure, NCI Thesaurus)

Dorothy told the Witch all her story: how the cyclone had brought her to the Land of Oz, how she had found her companions, and of the wonderful adventures they had met with.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

It was this pride of Boy Jim’s which led to an adventure which makes me shiver now when I think of it.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

My participation in some of his adventures was always a privilege which entailed discretion and reticence upon me.

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

There is no other door, and nobody goes in or out of that one but, once in a great while, the gentleman of my adventure.

(The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Aries is the sign of adventure, so choose a setting you’ve never been to, and plan an active vacation at a hotel or resort that will allow you to participate in sports.

(AstrologyZone.com, by Susan Miller)

And, upon this occasion, I hope the reader will pardon my relating an odd adventure.

(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)

Both men were manifestly out of place, and why such as they should adventure the North is part of the mystery of things that passes understanding.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

Meantime you can go to Italy, Germany, Switzerland, where you will, and enjoy pictures, music, scenery, and adventures to your heart's content.

(Little Women, by Louisa May Alcott)

We have had adventures enough and they are neither suitable to our character or our position.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)