Brinkmanship is a noun that refers to the practice of pursuing a dangerous policy.

The word brink refers to something unwelcome that is about to occur. Our word of the day combines this word with the suffix M-A-N-S-H-I-P which means ‘skill.’ Originally coined during the cold war of the mid-twentieth century, it initially referred to the act of a nation putting itself on the brink of war for political gain. Here’s an example:

There was a great deal of brinkmanship at that point in history that later proved to be unpopular with the nation. Most people deeply resent being placed in peril for the sake of politics.