What is the Latin word for venture?

The usual Latin words for “venture” are perīculum, ālea, facinus; also fortūna, vīta, caput. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

English → Latin

“venture” in Latin

perīculumtrial, experiment, attempt, proof, essay; risk, hazard, danger, peril; ruin, destruction āleaa die; any game involving dice; the game of chance facinusdeed, action, doing; adventure, venture, undertaking; crime, wickedness, evil deed fortūnafortune, luck; good fortune; misfortune (depending on context); destiny, fate vītalife; living, support, subsistence; a way of life caputthe head (of humans and animals); head; top; summit; point; end; extremity (beginning or end); origin; source; spring; h temereby chance, by accident, at random; without design, intent, or purpose; casually, fortuitously, rashly, heedlessly, thoug audeōto dare, venture, risk; to be eager for battle cōnorto try, attempt adeōto approach, go to; to attend (a performance); to undertake, undergo

Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864

venture s.

periculum (danger): alea (game of hazard; hazard): facinus: facinus audax (bold deed): dimicatio fortunae or fortunarum, vitae, or capitis (danger where one’s property or life is at stake). At a venture, temere. At all ventures, temere. Vid: also, CAST, s.; RISK.

venture v.

To have courage to do a thing, audere (to run a risk): conari (to be bold, to make an effort, with an infinitive; ☞ never with ut).

Intransitively, To undertake a thing attended with danger, to run the risk of, aleam subire or adire: se in casum dare (to run the risk): audere (to dare). To venture an engagement, in aciem or certamen descendere (☞ Tac. says, poetically, audere aciem, Ann., 12, 28): to venture a decisive battle, summis cum hoste copiis contendere: to venture nothing, periculum or discrimen non audere, non subire.

To expose to loss or danger, aliquid in aleam dare: ire in aleam alicujus rei (to peril or risk anything): aliquid audere (to dare anything): periculum alicujus rei or in aliqua re facere: aliquid tentare, experiri: periclitari (to try one’s luck in a dangerous business). (The words are found in this connection and order.) experiri et periclitari. To venture one’s life, committere se periculo mortis; manifesto periculo corpus objicere or caput offerre: to venture one’s life for anyone, inferre se in periculum capitis atque vitae discrimen pro alicujus salute: to venture one’s self, se committere (e.g., in aciem, in hostilem terram, in locum praecipitem): to venture one’s self in the midst of the enemy, se immittere in mediae pugnae discrimen: to venture one’s self against anyone, audere aliquem aggredi; aliquem adire audere.

Quick answer

What is the Latin word for venture?: The usual Latin words for “venture” are perīculum, ālea, facinus; also fortūna, vīta, caput. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.

Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.