chary
adjective
Did you know?
It was sorrow that bred the caution of chary. In Middle English chary meant "sorrowful," a sense that harks back to the word's Old English ancestor caru (an early form of care, and another term that originally meant "sorrow" or "grief"). In a sense switch that demonstrates that love can be both bitter and sweet, chary later came to mean "dear" or "cherished." That's how 16th-century English dramatist George Peele used it: "the chariest and the choicest queen, That ever did delight my royal eyes." Both sorrow and affection have largely faded from chary, however, and in Modern English the word is most often used as a synonym of either careful or sparing.
Synonyms
- alert
- careful
- cautious
- circumspect
- conservative
- considerate
- gingerly
- guarded
- heedful
- safe
- wary
Example Sentences
Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 18 July 2022 Knox was a bit chary on specifics, but no athlete allows that many injections without asking questions. Richard A. Lovett, Outside Online, 1 Sep. 2021 Beautiful is a strong word, and artists, critics and scholars are chary of it. Washington Post, 3 Nov. 2021 With a writer so chary of detail, the reader rushes to fill in. Caleb Crain, The Atlantic, 10 Aug. 2021 That tone is most obvious in the author’s chary regard of his icon. John Semley, The New Republic, 26 May 2021 Evangelical Christians, traditionally chary of getting involved in partisan politics. Rick Perlstein, Smithsonian Magazine, 17 Aug. 2020 The autocratic Chinese government is also chary of any display of mass mobilization, even benign ones like Pride. Charlie Campbell / Shanghai, Time, 15 June 2018 Rising interest rates in America prompted investors to take a charier view of emerging markets. The Economist, 14 June 2018 See More Word History
Middle English charri "sorrowful, dear, cherished," going back to Old English cearig "troubled, troublesome, taking care," going back to Germanic *karaga- (whence Old Saxon & Old High German karag "sorrowful"), from *karō "sorrow, worry" + *-aga-, by-form of *-iga- -y entry 1 — more at care entry 1
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2
chary
adjective
Synonyms & Similar Words
- wary
- cautious
- careful
- circumspect
- alert
- heedful
- guarded
- gingerly
- considerate
- conservative
- vigilant
- attentive
- watchful
- thoughtful
- regardful
- safe
- advertent
- observant
- awake
- canny
- cagey
- provident
- foresighted
- cagy
- calculating
- deliberate
- shrewd
- slow
- foresightful
- hypercautious
- forethoughtful
- ultracautious
- ultracareful
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- careless
- unmindful
- heedless
- reckless
- impetuous
- venturesome
- bold
- unsafe
- rash
- regardless
- negligent
- unguarded
- incautious
- brash
- unwary
- remiss
- inattentive
- lax
- thoughtless
- indiscreet
- imprudent
- injudicious
- inconsiderate
- neglectful
- asleep
- forgetful
- inadvertent
- unintentional
- unplanned
- absentminded
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of chary are cautious, circumspect, and wary. While all these words mean "prudently watchful and discreet in the face of danger or risk," chary implies a cautious reluctance to give, act, or speak freely.
The words cautious and chary are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, cautious implies the exercise of forethought usually prompted by fear of danger.
While the synonyms circumspect and chary are close in meaning, circumspect suggests less fear and stresses the surveying of all possible consequences before acting or deciding.
Although the words wary and chary have much in common, wary emphasizes suspiciousness and alertness in watching for danger and cunning in escaping it.