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Synonyms

cagey

American  
[key-jee] / ˈkeɪ dʒi /
Also cagy

adjective

cagier, cagiest
  1. cautious, wary, or shrewd.

    a cagey reply to the probing question.

    Synonyms:
    chary, leery, prudent, careful
    Antonyms:
    forthright, open

cagey British  
/ ˈkeɪdʒɪ /

adjective

  1. informal not open or frank; cautious; wary

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of cagey

An Americanism dating back to 1890–95; cage + -y 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

But they were pretty cagey against Nottingham Forest last week in the Premier League.

From BBC Aug. 27, 2026

As I peppered him with questions about the pink car and the Brinks armored truck, he remained cagey while slowly yielding information.

From Slate Aug. 14, 2026

Food professionals from haute cuisine down to trend-savvy sandwich shops tend to be cagey about where they get their ramps.

From The Wall Street Journal May 13, 2026

A second US official was cagey when asked about whether an extension was likely to be agreed on Trump's trip.

From Barron's May 10, 2026

I was dealing with cagey people and I would be cagey.

From "Black Boy" by Richard Wright

With what's at stake, though, it might be a little cagier than that.

From BBC May 8, 2025

But others, especially those in the heavily polluting energy sector, have been cagier about their intentions or have resisted overhauling operations for the sake of planetary survival.

From Los Angeles Times Sep. 14, 2021

The answer here was cagier, and I was asked not to quote it directly.

From Slate Aug. 12, 2021

The athletes, less forthright about their body-image issues, were cagier about their usage.

From The Guardian Jan. 31, 2020

Some cagier gamblers might wait until closer to game time to bet the underdogs.

From New York Times Sep. 18, 2019

Few can parry like Bacon — and he was at his cagiest about his work, speaking abstractly of the importance of “chance” and “accident.”

From New York Times Mar. 23, 2021

Yet here she was, about to match wits with some of the cleverest and cagiest card players in the world.

From Washington Post Jul. 1, 2020

Though I had expected Johns to be guarded about his past or his personal life, it was a surprise to find him cagiest about his artistic process.

From New York Times Feb. 18, 2019

She has a winsome translator, a force of loyal eunuch fighters and an adviser who happens to be the cagiest person in this entire story.

From New York Times Jun. 24, 2016

"The cagiest bat flies once too often," he said.

From The Bat by Avery Hopwood

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