carefully
Americanadverb
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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.
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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
Etymology
Origin of carefully
First recorded before 1000; careful ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )
Explanation
Carefully means cautiously or painstakingly. If you carefully study your vocabulary words, you'll ace your next quiz! This adverb comes from the Old English carfullice — but before coming to mean "in a way that avoids harm," it meant "sorrowfully." In fact, the very oldest meaning of care was "to be anxious or to grieve." These days, you don't cry when you do something carefully. You just take your time and make sure you're doing it right and that no one's being harmed by it, like when you check carefully behind your car for the neighbor's cat before you back out of the driveway.
Vocabulary lists containing carefully
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.
The work, published in Nature Electronics, shows that carefully controlling the atomic boundary between a semiconductor and its insulating layer can allow the dielectric to be made extremely thin while maintaining strong electrical performance.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026
Now, conservationists have begun a carefully co-ordinated operation to fly him across the Atlantic ocean, making sure he does not dry out along the way.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
Because the satellites travel in carefully coordinated orbits, they can separate magnetic signals coming from the core from signals produced by the crust, oceans, ionosphere and magnetosphere.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 7, 2026
Insurance companies carefully vet artists before offering what’s known as “event cancellation/non-appearance coverage.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026
I carefully unwind the napkin scarf from Pierre’s sagging exterior.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
