cautiously

American  

[kaw-shuhs-lee] / ˈkɔ ʃəs li /

adverb

1. in a way that shows alertness and prudence in a hazardous or uncertain situation; carefully; warily.

   He stepped cautiously onto the loose planks.

   I am cautiously optimistic that both parties will accept the compromise.

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Other Word Forms

• hypercautiously
  adverb
• ultracautiously
  adverb
• uncautiously
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of cautiously

First recorded in 1610–20; cautious ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Explanation

Acting cautiously means being careful and hesitant, the way you step cautiously into the first dark room of a haunted house. Whenever you use caution as you do something, you're behaving cautiously. The Latin root, cautio, means "caution, care, or foresight." Thinking through possible dangers of a situation, or considering any problems that might come up, is acting cautiously. You should approach that cow cautiously; she kicked the last person who tried to milk her!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cautiously

The study's answer is cautiously optimistic, although success would depend on several important conditions.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 7, 2026

Still, with summer travel demand looking strong going into the third quarter, the group is cautiously optimistic on the outlook, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 5, 2026

Sources close to the Turkish Cypriot government said they were "cautiously optimistic" about the talks.

From Barron's ● Jul. 28, 2026

“We remain cautiously hopeful as we continue searching for the underlying cause of her illness.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026

He cautiously crept up to the porch and—after pausing to take in a deep, fortifying, leg-steadying breath—shimmied through Duke’s doggy door.

From "Dog Squad" by Chris Grabenstein

Related Words

• carefully
• slowly