How to Use nonthreatening in a Sentence

nonthreatening

adjective
  • It's best to approach the dog in a calm, nonthreatening way.
  • There were only nine cases in the city; even to a doctor, that seemed nonthreatening.
    — Jonathan Kolatch, WSJ, 7 Apr. 2020
  • Bust out the sparklers, bang snaps and other nonthreatening fireworks.
    — Michelle Jenkins, idahostatesman, 28 June 2018
  • The ball soared of Clemens’ bat, a seemingly nonthreatening fly to deep left.
    — Nick Moyle, San Antonio Express-News, 11 June 2018
  • For the most part, these wines were recognizable, nonthreatening and cheap.
    — Michael Austin, chicagotribune.com, 5 July 2017
  • The walk is aimed at getting teens that information in a fun and nonthreatening setting.
    — Suzanne Baker, Naperville Sun, 20 Mar. 2018
  • But the allegations against the singers threaten the nonthreatening image that makes K-pop tick.
    — Min Joo Kim, Washington Post, 5 Aug. 2019
  • My wife loves animals and views the mouse visitor as a furry little nonthreatening creature.
    — Joan Morris, The Mercury News, 12 May 2017
  • Here, the image — a powerful black man quelling his emotion and struggling to present as calm, smaller, nonthreatening — has the strength of parable.
    — James Poniewozik, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2018
  • Cartoonish in-jokes turn out to be an effective, nonthreatening entry point for even the most extreme ideologies.
    — Angela Watercutter, WIRED, 1 Apr. 2018
  • In the past, Putin has campaigned against a roster of nonthreatening challengers that neither debate nor criticize him.
    — Yana Gorokhovskaia, Washington Post, 4 Jan. 2018
  • That says a lot about Atkins' pleasant, nonthreatening personality.
    — George Skelton, latimes.com, 22 Mar. 2018
  • Communicate with your partner in a nonthreatening way, because ultimatums and threats do not prevent affairs.
    — Monique Judge, The Root, 14 Mar. 2018
  • Once a nonthreatening neighbor, the Nets have become the preferred New York destination.
    — Chris Mannix, SI.com, 9 July 2019
  • The goal is to help students learn HERO concepts in a nonthreatening and age-appropriate manner.
    — Julia Sclafani, latimes.com, 26 June 2019
  • Almond was familiar and nonthreatening and blended beautifully with greens.
    — Rachel Sugar, Vox, 14 Aug. 2019
  • In the Colorado legal world, Gorsuch was known as a menschy and nonthreatening Republican.
    — Simon Van Zuylen-Wood, Daily Intelligencer, 28 May 2018
  • As a result, these songbird parents produced 40 percent fewer offspring over the breeding season compared to animals that heard nonthreatening sounds.
    — Liza Gross, Smithsonian, 11 July 2017
  • As a result, these songbird parents produced 40 percent fewer offspring over the breeding season compared to animals that heard nonthreatening sounds.
    — Liza Gross, Smithsonian, 12 July 2017
  • Much like Uncle Tom, Xavier, the perfect biracial teenager, is presented as a nonthreatening fantasy for the book’s white audience.
    — Kiley Reid, New York Times, 10 Mar. 2020
  • In discussing its role, company executives sound less like Thiel, bent on overthrowing the system, and more like a would-be thief strolling through a jewelry store, determined to appear nonthreatening.
    — Daniel Roth, WIRED, 22 Feb. 2010
  • Farrell’s Union soldier initially asserts himself as a decent, thankful, nonthreatening presence.
    — Robert W. Butler, kansascity.com, 29 June 2017
  • Worse, the latest research suggests that only 27% of American women know how to apply eyeliner in a cohesive, nonthreatening fashion.
    — Joe Queenan, WSJ, 12 July 2018
  • Europe may come apart at the seams because the cumulative effect of accepting nonthreatening refugees daily poses a major threat to Western cohesion, values, resources and fiscal health.
    — WSJ, 8 Nov. 2018
  • Police agencies can walk away if the individual seems nonthreatening, and hospitals can discharge patients after a medical assessment and before a psychiatric assessment can be made.
    — Thomas Curwen, latimes.com, 18 Apr. 2018
  • Here, grizzlies don’t equate people with food—as opposed to populated areas where alluring smells forge a connection—and have learned to tolerate humans, thanks to decades of naturalists adopting nonthreatening practices.
    — Susan Portnoy, AFAR Media, 3 Oct. 2025
  • This account — which, again, comes from Miller himself — shows a high-level presidential adviser responding to a completely nonviolent and nonthreatening gesture by throwing away his own food.
    — Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, 9 July 2018
  • Otherwise, the 2013 Leaf is still just as unobtrusive and nonthreatening to drive as before, with largely progressive brake feel and light but precise steering that offers almost no feel.
    — Mike Spinelli, Popular Mechanics, 30 Apr. 2013
  • Instead of the industrial look favored by many rival robots, NEO is notable for its aggressively nonthreatening appearance.
    — James Vincent, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
  • Instead of the industrial look favored by many rival robots, NEO is notable for its aggressively nonthreatening appearance.
    — James Vincent, Harpers Magazine, 23 Nov. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nonthreatening.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: