wary
Americanadjective
-
watchful; being on one's guard against danger.
- Synonyms:
- prudent, circumspect, guarded, vigilant, alert
-
arising from or characterized by caution.
to give someone a wary look.
adjective
-
watchful, cautious, or alert
-
characterized by caution or watchfulness
Synonym Usage
See careful.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of wary
Explanation
Describe yourself as wary if you don't quite trust someone or something and want to proceed with caution. Be wary of risky things like wild mushrooms and Internet deals! You can trace wary through Old English back to Old High German giwar "aware, attentive." If you keep a wary eye on something, you are attentive for signs that it is becoming dangerous. Likewise, if you give someone a wary glance, your face conveys the suspicion and caution you feel. When you are wary of driving alone at night or making promises, you fear something bad might happen if you do these things.
Vocabulary lists containing wary
100 Top "SAT" Words
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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
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"The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe
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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.
Decades after the church arrived in Clearwater, the city government’s relationship with the church remains wary.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 7, 2026
But Shakespeare, who was as wary of rebellion as he was of tyranny, saw the flaws in every faction of society.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 1, 2026
"They want to be wary of you a little bit but not, like, aggressive," he added.
From Barron's • Jun. 28, 2026
The experience left him wary of sprawling, unindexed collections for nearly a decade.
From BBC • Jun. 27, 2026
Pearl, still wary after the Halloween party, sighed.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
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.
