Caution Meaning
/ˈkɔːʃ(ə)n/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounPrudence when faced with, or when expecting to face, danger; care taken in order to avoid risk or harm.
nounA careful attention to the probable effects of an act, in order that failure or harm may be avoided.
Sentence Examples
Let's take the utmost caution against errors.
If you drive with anything less than extreme caution, you're risking your life.
The soldiers proceeded to the frontier with caution.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
Due to slippery roads, the driver was advised to exercise extreme ____ while turning.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
You should proceed with ____ when you are walking on the thin ice.
Word Origin & History
Recorded since 1297 as Middle English caucioun (“bail, guarantee, pledge”), from Old French caution (“security, surety”), itself from Latin cautiō, from cautus, past participle of caveō, cavēre (“be on one's guard”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"In way of caution I must tell you."
— c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii]:
"[...] and on the Saturday heavy seas pounded the W.R. on its exposed coastal stretch between Dawlish and Teignmouth, loosening the ballast and forcing trains to proceed with extreme caution."
— 1960 December, “Talking of Trains: The railways and the Devon floods”, in Trains Illustrated, page 709:
"The Parliament would yet give his majesty sufficient caution that the war should be vigorously prosecuted."
— 1702–1704, Edward [Hyde, 1st] Earl of Clarendon, (please specify |book=I to XVI), in The History of the Rebellion and Civil Wars in England, Begun in the Year 1641. […], Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed at the [Sheldonian] Theater:
"‘You are a caution,’ she said, when she came out. ‘I don't understand you.’"
— 1915, W. Somerset Maugham, chapter 58, in Of Human Bondage:
"In its May 1965 issue, Life magazine condemned skateboards as a “menace to limb and even to life,” and cautioned readers about riders who “take over the paths made for peaceful strollers.”"
— 2018 July 13, Jaime Marie Davis, “How photographers have captured skateboarding through generations”, in CNN:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
Due to slippery roads, the driver was advised to exercise extreme ____ while turning.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
You should proceed with ____ when you are walking on the thin ice.