carefully

[kair-fuh-lee]

adverb

1. in a cautious way, with attention to possible risks and dangers.

   Although somewhat "folksy" in his interview, the congressman carefully avoided pitfalls where he would be vulnerable to attack.

2. in a thorough, attentive, or painstaking way, giving thought to avoiding errors or omissions.

   I have to carefully examine the copy editor's marked-up manuscript, double-checking everything and approving or vetoing changes.

Other Word Forms

• quasi-carefully adverb
• ultracarefully adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of carefully¹

First recorded before 1000; careful ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Example Sentences

We carefully removed all the cream slices from a big box of Oreos and formed a ball.

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Visible most clearly in folds at the corners, the paper is carefully affixed to the surface of a wooden form.

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Williams’s carefully chosen words—especially “near term”—suggested cutting is the path of least regret.

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Apple engineers its brand as carefully as its devices, helping it charge premium prices that in turn drive outsize profits.

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The Cincinnati-based Scripps said in a statement saying the company’s board of directors “will carefully review and evaluate any proposals, including the unsolicited Sinclair offer.”

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Related Words

• anxiously 
• attentively 
• conscientiously www.thesaurus.com
• correctly www.thesaurus.com
• deliberately 
• delicately 
• discreetly 
• faithfully 
• fully 
• gingerly 
• laboriously 
• meticulously 
• precisely 
• prudently 
• rigorously 
• scrupulously 
• thoroughly 
• thoughtfully www.thesaurus.com
• warily