cautious
- adjective
- /ˈkɔːʃəs/
- She was always cautious when crossing the busy street, looking both ways carefully.
- a cautious approach
- take a cautious approach
- need to be cautious
In the future, he'll be more cautious and not get caught.
- In the future, he'll be more cautious and not get caught.
- I've got to be pretty cautious with what I say.
- The Luna voice, soft and cautious because of the powder, hisses.
- And you know, I'm a little more cautious because of the experience.
- I, I get not letting the torment of being too cautious ruin the endeavor.
- And I think I've also been very cautious of certain roles.
- Ivan Archibaldo is like more cautious, more low key.
- So I will now be extra cautious about how I read them.
- So again, he becomes more cautious in his willingness to approach.
- And, and, and end up being really cautious about how we communicate.
- What I do, though, is I'm fairly cautious with the physics.
- And and certainly we should all be cautious about government overreach.
- This is why I think you have to be duly cautious when dealing with Jordan Peterson.
- So they so they played a kind of cautious defensive game.
Examples
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He'd been too busy for the movies lately and had to be cautious with his money.
Fiction book (1991) -
We just need to be cautious and understand its complexity.
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In the future, he'll be more cautious and not get caught.
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So I will now be extra cautious about how I read them.
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The students would be cautious, but in the end, they would accept the help.
Fiction book (1991) -
There is reason to be cautious and strategic.
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We spent an hour with the King, and his reaction was cautious but positive.
Fiction book (1991) -
So I'll be, I'll be very cautious about this.
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Future researchers should be cautious in the interpretation of such data.
Academic text (2008) -
I'm now much more cautious about spectacular findings.
Synonyms
Careful because you do not trust someone or something
Being careful and thinking ahead when you make decisions
A person who keeps careful watch for danger or problems
Being careful and ready to notice danger or problems
Alert and ready to act if danger or problems appear
Careful about possible risks before acting or deciding
Careful to do things correctly and notice small details
Being more careful than needed because you are afraid of risk
Alert and ready to deal with danger or problems
Careful about showing feelings or strong opinions to avoid saying too much
Antonyms
Compounds
How Careful
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
The word cautious comes from the Latin root caut- from cavere meaning 'to be on guard' or 'beware', and it is the same root as the common word caution. So, to be cautious is to act carefully to avoid danger or mistakes.