Leery Meaning
/ˈlɪəɹi/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjCautious or wary due to realistic suspicions.
adjCautious, suspicious, wary, hesitant, or nervous about something; having reservations or concerns.
Sentence Examples
After being misled once, the board grew leery of bold promises.
I'd be pretty leery of walking along the docks at night.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
The experienced hiker was very ____ of the thin ice covering the frozen lake.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She was ____ of strangers offering help.
Word Origin & History
First attested in 1718, “untrustful, suspicious”, either from leer (“sideward look”) + -y, lear (“learning, knowledge”) + -y. More at leer, lear.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"“[…]He was one of their top gun-fighters—always up to his ears in the thick of any fightin' that was goin' on. He never was leery of anything on two feet, I'll say that much for'm.”"
— 1913 October, Jack London, chapter X, in The Valley of the Moon, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, →OCLC:
"“He's so darn afraid you'll be offended if he smokes. You scare him. Every time he speaks of the weather you jump him because he ain't talking about poetry or Gertie—Goethe?—or some other highbrow junk. You've got him so leery he scarcely dares to come here.”"
— 1920, Sinclair Lewis, chapter XIV, in Main Street: The Story of Carol Kennicott, New York, N.Y.: Harcourt, Brace and Howe, →OCLC:
"And there was a particularly brutal villain with leery eyes, ugly mouth, with one tooth gone, and an iron jaw like a hull-dog's."
— 1902, Francis Hopkinson Smith, chapter X, in The Fortunes of Oliver Horn:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The experienced hiker was very ____ of the thin ice covering the frozen lake.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
She was ____ of strangers offering help.