1
as in naive
lacking in worldly wisdom or informed judgment
e-mail scams that take advantage of unwary recipients
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in careless
not paying or showing close attention especially for the purpose of avoiding trouble
a dangerous stretch of desert that has claimed many unwary travelers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in susceptible
readily taken advantage of
unwary consumers who unquestioningly swallow the dubious claims of TV pitchmen
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unwary
Employment data bristle with pitfalls for the unwary, even among experienced economists such as Ohanian.
—
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 3 Dec. 2024
The result is that fraudsters have rushed into cryptocurrency, exploiting the complexity and hype to dupe the unwary.
—Hilary Allen, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2023
These are unexplainable phenomena scattered throughout the game’s world that can kill an unwary player in an instant.
—Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
Some of these bad actors are even setting up fake Hugging Face profiles to pose as Meta or other technology companies to lure downloads from the unwary, according to Swanson.
—Iain Martin, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for unwary
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 3 Dec. 2024
The result is that fraudsters have rushed into cryptocurrency, exploiting the complexity and hype to dupe the unwary.
—Hilary Allen, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2023
These are unexplainable phenomena scattered throughout the game’s world that can kill an unwary player in an instant.
—Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
Some of these bad actors are even setting up fake Hugging Face profiles to pose as Meta or other technology companies to lure downloads from the unwary, according to Swanson.
—Iain Martin, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for unwary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unwary
Adjective
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Even Portugal, who have been naive defensively but have considerable pace in attack, could threaten in transition, and Italy will need to shore up that element of their game to avoid being caught out.—
Cerys Jones,
New York Times,
4 July 2025
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How did an obscure, scientifically naive mining society discover the wheel, when highly advanced civilizations, such as the ancient Egyptians, did not?—
Kai James,
JSTOR Daily,
3 July 2025
Adjective
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Proof Carefully To Show Professionalism And Attention To Detail What gets my negative attention are résumés with careless errors—typos, missing words and inconsistent formatting.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
10 July 2025
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Social media erupted in fear, and disgust, or simply threw shame his way for being careless.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
8 July 2025
Adjective
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This results in long, deep wounds in the surrounding flesh that are also susceptible to secondary bacterial infections, causing severe pain, and potentially death if left untreated.—
Elizabeth Weise,
USA Today,
10 July 2025
-
Being able to track this is super helpful because male cats are more susceptible to UTIs, which can be potentially life-threatening.—
Molly Higgins,
Wired News,
9 July 2025
Adjective
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Comprehensive cell phone analysis can be just as powerful in clearing innocent drivers by proving no user interaction occurred.—
Lars Daniel,
Forbes.com,
14 July 2025
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But the alternative is much worse: a world where the loss of innocent life is treated as inescapable, where no calamity can be prevented or bad situation reformed.—
Olga Khazan,
The Atlantic,
14 July 2025
Adjective
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For example, using Sentinel's canine abilities to identify any unsafe obstacles in the plant to prevent injuries.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
Freep.com,
12 July 2025
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At that time, the home was declared an unsafe structure and was set for demolition, Toussaint said.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
12 July 2025
Adjective
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This sweetener is easy to make with only sugar and water, but adding lemon peel to the mixture during cooking adds citrus flavor.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
7 July 2025
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The manicure is elegant, natural, and easy to recreate.—
Lina-Marie Baatz,
Glamour,
7 July 2025
Adjective
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One of the most common and harmful examples is the Social Security Administration phishing scam, which targets unsuspecting individuals with alarming and deceptive messages.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
6 July 2025
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The National Weather Service reports these currents can be difficult to spot and are especially dangerous for unsuspecting beachgoers.—
Adeola Adeosun,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 July 2025
Adjective
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Alleged stabber Larry Boards is facing two counts of felony assault, reckless endangerment, and harassment for the crazed confrontation at the 82nd St.-Jackson Heights No. 7 train station at about 4:15 p.m. Friday, cops said.—
Thomas Tracy,
New York Daily News,
12 July 2025
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Broadly, the search warrant describes the crimes as first-degree intentional homicide and reckless endangering of safety by use of a deadly weapon.—
Claudia Levens,
jsonline.com,
10 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unwary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unwary. Accessed 20 Jul. 2025.
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