Question
Updated on
30 Nov 2022
- Ukrainian
-
English (US)
-
English (UK)
Question about English (US)
What is the difference between dangerous and hazardous ?Feel free to just provide example sentences.
What is the difference between dangerous and hazardous ?Feel free to just provide example sentences.
Some examples would be nice. Thank you in advance!
Answers
30 Nov 2022
Featured answer
- English (US)
- English (UK)
I’ll try to explain the difference, but even for me as a native speaker it is a little hard to understand. I suggest just using “dangerous” if you don’t understand the difference since it is said more commonly, and will fit most situations.
Hazard: risk through exposure or contact.
Danger: risk through a physical or chemical effect, usually immediate
Usually hazardous is used to describe chemicals like arsenic or tobacco that can cause health issues. It is awkward to describe a situation as being hazardous.
example: Drunk driving is dangerous (Makes sense, there is a risk of immediate physical harm)
Drunk driving is hazardous (Awkward, hazardous isn’t commonly used to describe things other than harmful substances)
Tobacco is hazardous.
(Makes sense, tobacco consumption can lead to cancer)
Tobacco is dangerous.
(A little bit awkward, tobacco
can harm your health but there is no immediate risk of injury from consuming it once. This can be said, but hazardous would make more sense in this situation.)
Acid is hazardous.
(Makes sense, acids are chemicals that can cause short and long term health effects)
Acid is dangerous.
(Makes sense, acid can cause immediate harm if you come into contact with it.)
So this isn’t an exact rule, but basically
hazardous = used to describe chemicals
and
dangerous = can be used to describe anything that might cause harm, but when talking about substances sometimes hazardous sounds more natural.
This is something that you might just have to learn through hearing the language more often.
Read more comments
- English (US)
- English (UK)
I’ll try to explain the difference, but even for me as a native speaker it is a little hard to understand. I suggest just using “dangerous” if you don’t understand the difference since it is said more commonly, and will fit most situations.
Hazard: risk through exposure or contact.
Danger: risk through a physical or chemical effect, usually immediate
Usually hazardous is used to describe chemicals like arsenic or tobacco that can cause health issues. It is awkward to describe a situation as being hazardous.
example: Drunk driving is dangerous (Makes sense, there is a risk of immediate physical harm)
Drunk driving is hazardous (Awkward, hazardous isn’t commonly used to describe things other than harmful substances)
Tobacco is hazardous.
(Makes sense, tobacco consumption can lead to cancer)
Tobacco is dangerous.
(A little bit awkward, tobacco
can harm your health but there is no immediate risk of injury from consuming it once. This can be said, but hazardous would make more sense in this situation.)
Acid is hazardous.
(Makes sense, acids are chemicals that can cause short and long term health effects)
Acid is dangerous.
(Makes sense, acid can cause immediate harm if you come into contact with it.)
So this isn’t an exact rule, but basically
hazardous = used to describe chemicals
and
dangerous = can be used to describe anything that might cause harm, but when talking about substances sometimes hazardous sounds more natural.
This is something that you might just have to learn through hearing the language more often.
- Ukrainian

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