13th cent. Old Spanish menaza. From Vulgar Latin *minacia 'id.' From Latin minacis "threatening." From minari "to threaten," a verb formed from minæ "threats," but originally "projecting points jutting from a wall" (see also almena).
From Proto-Italic *men-ā- 'id.' From the verb *men-ē- "to protrude." From Proto-Indo-European *men-eh1- 'id.'
Romance
Asturian amenaza, Portuguese ameaça, Galician ameaza, Catalan amenaça, Old French menace, Italian minace
Basque
Basque beaza (borrowed from Spanish)
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