Synonyms for cautious
ˈkɔ ʃəscau·tious

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:3.7 / 3 votes

1. cautiousadjective

   Antonyms:
   careless, neglecting

2. cautiousadjective

   He took a few cautious steps out the door.

   Antonyms:
   neglecting, careless

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. cautious

   Vigilant implies more sustained activity and more intelligent volition than alert; one may be habitually alert by reason of native quickness of perception and thought, or one may be momentarily alert under some excitement or expectancy; one who is vigilant is so with thoughtful purpose. One is vigilant against danger or harm; he may be alert or watchful for good as well as against evil; he is wary in view of suspected stratagem, trickery, or treachery. A person may be wakeful because of some merely physical excitement or excitability, as through insomnia; yet he may be utterly careless and negligent in his wakefulness, the reverse of watchful; a person who is truly watchful must keep himself wakeful while on watch, in which case wakeful has something of mental quality. Watchful, from the Saxon, and vigilant, from the Latin, are almost exact equivalents; but vigilant has somewhat more of sharp definiteness and somewhat more suggestion of volition; one may be habitually watchful; one is vigilant of set purpose and for direct cause, as in the presence of an enemy. Compare ALERT.

   Synonyms:
   alert, awake, careful, circumspect, on the alert, on the lookout, sleepless, vigilant, wakeful, wary, watchful, wide-awake

   Antonyms:
   careless, drowsy, dull, heedless, inattentive, incautious, inconsiderate, neglectful, negligent, oblivious, thoughtless, unwary

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. timid, cautiousadjective

   people who are fearful and cautious

   "whitewater rafting is not for the timid"

   Synonyms:
   timid

   Antonyms:
   tearaway(a), immoderate, madcap, hotheaded, incautious, impetuous, impulsive, brainish

2. cautiousadjective

   showing careful forethought

   "reserved and cautious; never making swift decisions"; "a cautious driver"

   Synonyms:
   conservative

   Antonyms:
   incautious, impetuous, madcap, brainish, impulsive, tearaway(a), hotheaded, immoderate

3. cautious, conservativeadjective

   avoiding excess

   "a conservative estimate"

   Synonyms:
   bourgeois, materialistic, button-down, buttoned-down, conservative

   Antonyms:
   impetuous, hotheaded, incautious, immoderate, brainish, madcap, tearaway(a), impulsive

Editors ContributionRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. careful, to hold-back, vigilant, wary, unsure

   i would be cautious about walking there after dark.

   Submitted by Soulwriter on June 13, 2021  

2. hesitant

   i would be cautious about walking there after dark.

   Submitted by anonymous on June 30, 2021  

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cautiousadjective

   Synonyms:
   prudent, wary, careful, heedful, chary, circumspect, discreet, watchful, vigilant

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. cautiousadjective

   Synonyms:
   circumspect, prudent, wary

   Antonyms:
   incautious, unwary

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:4.0 / 1 vote

1. List of paraphrases for "cautious":

   prudent, careful, wary, warned, circumspect, conservative, vigilant, precautionary, timid, prudential, caution, prudence, wise

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How to use cautious in a sentence?

1. Anand James:

   The recent rise was far too quick and we are seeing a consolidation at the moment, with the budget behind us... and even though rates are expected to be held, there is an eye on some announcements coming up in the monetary policy committee meeting and that is partly why markets are cautious.

2. Gianno Caldwell:

   Fox News political analyst Gianno Caldwell, author of' Taken for Granted,' talks to homeless about the coronavirus crisis. Until this thing runs out, I dont think we can be overly prepared, or cautious, or guarded.

3. Nobuhiko Kuramochi:

   The market started to get cautious on heightened expectations that the Fed will raise interest rates soon.

4. Kathryn Kosmides:

   They're either a cautious person and searching everyone, or they have a gut feeling about someone.

5. John Carey:

   There's a little nervousness about earnings reports that we'll be seeing over the next couple or three weeks, the international situation continues to weigh on people's minds, and commodities were weaker earlier. In the absence of any strong new economic data or blow-away type earnings results, people are still cautious, waiting for the Fed to decide on whether it's going to raise rates or not.