to threaten
Loading your saved state.
to threaten
To hold out the prospect of a negative consequence, punishment, or violence to someone in order to intimidate that person or get them to behave in a certain way.
Der Vermieter drohte ihm die Kündigung an, falls die Miete nicht pünktlich bezahlt wird.
The landlord threatened him with termination of the lease if the rent was not paid on time.
'Androhen' (to threaten) is a separable verb. The prefix 'an-' comes at the end in a main clause. In subordinate clauses and in the infinitive with 'zu', the verb stays together.
Er drohte seinem Nachbarn Konsequenzen an.
He threatened his neighbor with consequences.
This verb is typically used with two objects: The person being threatened is in the dative, and the thing being threatened is in the accusative. The pattern is: jemandem (dative) etwas (accusative) androhen.
Der Chef drohte dem Mitarbeiter (Dativ) die Kündigung (Akkusativ) an.
The boss threatened the employee (dative) with dismissal (accusative).
It is often used to express the threat of negative consequences. Typical combinations are 'Konsequenzen androhen' (to threaten consequences), 'eine Strafe androhen' (to threaten a punishment), 'Gewalt androhen' (to threaten violence), or 'rechtliche Schritte androhen' (to threaten legal action).
Das Unternehmen drohte mit rechtlichen Schritten, falls die Rechnung nicht bezahlt wird.
The company threatened legal action if the invoice was not paid.
to threaten
'drohen' and 'androhen' are very close when someone announces a negative consequence. 'drohen' is more general and can also stand without a specific object: someone threatens a person or threatens someone with something. 'androhen' often sounds a bit more formal and puts stronger emphasis on the specific punishment or measure being announced. You say 'jemandem drohen' (to threaten someone), but 'eine Strafe androhen' or 'jemandem eine Strafe androhen' (to threaten a punishment / to threaten someone with a punishment). The words are easy to confuse because they have the same core meaning. As a guide: 'drohen' works generally, while 'androhen' is especially suitable when a clearly stated consequence is involved.
Die Schule droht den Schülern eine Strafe an, wenn sie weiter fehlen.
The school is threatening the students with a punishment if they continue to be absent.
Der Nachbar droht mit der Polizei, weil die Musik zu laut ist.
The neighbor is threatening to call the police because the music is too loud.