warier; wariest
: marked by keen caution, cunning, and watchfulness especially in detecting and escaping danger
Synonyms
Examples of wary in a Sentence
Great critics are sometimes wary of great authors. Eliot and Pound usually sidled past Shakespeare.
—
William Logan, New York Times Book Review, 11 Feb. 2001
Though sycamore wood was much used, pioneers were wary of the tree's fuzzy leaves, which they believed brought allergies and even consumption.
—Arthur Plotnik, The Urban Tree Book: An Uncommon Field Guide for City and Town, 2000
Modern literary novelists … wary of neat solutions and happy endings, have tended to invest their mysteries with an aura of ambiguity and to leave them unresolved.
—David Lodge, The Art of Fiction, 1992
The store owner kept a wary eye on him.
Investors are increasingly wary about putting money into stocks.
William Logan, New York Times Book Review, 11 Feb. 2001
Though sycamore wood was much used, pioneers were wary of the tree's fuzzy leaves, which they believed brought allergies and even consumption.
—Arthur Plotnik, The Urban Tree Book: An Uncommon Field Guide for City and Town, 2000
Modern literary novelists … wary of neat solutions and happy endings, have tended to invest their mysteries with an aura of ambiguity and to leave them unresolved.
—David Lodge, The Art of Fiction, 1992
The store owner kept a wary eye on him.
Investors are increasingly wary about putting money into stocks.
Recent Examples on the Web
Because generative AI was used to create the phishing message itself, the email had no misspellings, the grammar was perfectly acceptable and, coming from the director’s genuine email account, left no obvious reason why the recipient would be wary of authenticity.
—Davey Winder, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
Among other suggestions, prosecutors say, victims should be wary of people who try to move conversations to encrypted instant messaging apps such as Whatsapp, Signal and others.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 12 Dec. 2024
So, be wary of any requests for payment in advance.
—Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
Nonprofits have long struggled to provide services in Short Creek, where polygamous families are taught to be wary of outsiders.
—Erin Alberty, Axios, 10 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for wary 
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Davey Winder, Forbes, 13 Dec. 2024
Among other suggestions, prosecutors say, victims should be wary of people who try to move conversations to encrypted instant messaging apps such as Whatsapp, Signal and others.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 12 Dec. 2024
So, be wary of any requests for payment in advance.
—Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 11 Dec. 2024
Nonprofits have long struggled to provide services in Short Creek, where polygamous families are taught to be wary of outsiders.
—Erin Alberty, Axios, 10 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for wary
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Dictionary Entries Near wary
Cite this Entry
“Wary.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wary. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
wary
adjective
ˈwa(ə)r-ē 
ˈwe(ə)r-
warier; wariest
: very cautious
especially
: being on guard against danger or trickery
wary of strangers
warily
adverb
ˈwar-ə-lē
ˈwer-
wariness
noun
ˈwar-ē-nəs
ˈwer-
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