to watch out
582
3.0
- phrasal verb
- /wɑtʃ aʊt/
- Informal
:
tener cuidado
- Please watch out for cars when crossing the street.
- watch out for each other
And we have a warning, watch out for the Riptide.
- And we have a warning, watch out for the Riptide.
- And I said, hey kid, watch out, that spiky tail, they're poisonous.
- I'm rolling along. There's an object there, Watch out. And we're at an intersection.
- But the guy who's coming in next, watch out for him.
- What I'm saying here is when you can be like, oh, watch out, honey, the waiter's coming.
- Whenever you think you've won a victory, watch out.
- If you're on her enemies list, watch out.
- Harry Potter, watch out at Eggy, Salt asks.
Examples
-
In human terms, I had an obligation to watch out for her.
Fiction book (1991) -
You better watch out for this machine, man.
-
Whoa now, watch out for your buddy.
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People need to watch out in the hot weather.
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If you see another mark like this, watch out.
-
- Because they have to watch out for many things for us.
-
Watch out down here, you might slip.
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So watch out for that if you have allergies.
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They told us to watch out for him.
-
Judge Standwell ended the evening with a warning: "Watch out for mousetraps."
Academic text (2009)
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To be careful and pay attention to possible danger
979
1.0
Take care to avoid danger or getting hurt
291
3.0
Watch carefully to notice danger or help someone
168
1.8
To be careful to avoid danger
153
1.6
Watch for danger or trouble
136
4.1
Be careful and watch for danger
134
3.2
Watch carefully for someone or something
104
6.8
Be careful about people who might try to harm you
97
3.8
Watch carefully for danger or a chance
85
5.6
Be careful to avoid danger or upsetting someone
63
3.7
Be careful when you move and act to avoid danger and trouble
30
3.1
To stay alert and watch for danger or trouble
28
3.4
To watch carefully so you notice danger or changes
27
3.5
Alert and ready to act if danger or problems appear
16
4.6
Watch carefully for something important or dangerous
8
3.0
Look at a person or thing very carefully for a while to notice problems
6
3.9
Act carefully to avoid mistakes, danger, or upsetting others
6
4.4
Ready and alert to notice danger or problems
1
6.0
Watch carefully for something you expect to see
Alert and ready to deal with danger or problems
Ready and careful about possible danger or problems
Antonyms
How Careful
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'be vigilant / take care' is directly derivable from combining 'watch' (to be watchful) with the particle 'out', which signals outward attention or caution; this follows a common, compositional verb+particle pattern. Because the components and the compositional logic are straightforward and cross-linguistically common, a B1 learner who knows both words would very likely infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The phrase watch out comes from the image of someone doing a watch out, looking carefully ahead to see any danger. So it means 'be careful' or 'try to avoid danger'.