Synonyms of cautionary

cautionary

adjective

as in warning

serving as or offering a warning

the story of King Midas is a cautionary tale about the perils of wishing for something—you just might get it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• warning
• admonitory
• premonitory
• punitive
• admonishing
• monitory
• cautioning
• exemplary
• didactic
• moralistic
• advisory
• moralizing
• counseling
• punishing

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of cautionary

This feature manages to simultaneously be a post-COVID cautionary tale about bug addiction and a celebration of kink. — William Earl, Variety, 25 July 2026

The Bank of Korea waited too long to hike rates and regulators too long to rein in margin excess, a cautionary example as the Fed risks making the same mistake. — Justin Zacks, CNBC, 24 July 2026

In any case, OpenAI’s breach of Hugging Face is both a cautionary tale of lack of guardrails on the offensive side and over moderation on the defensive side. — Tim Keary, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026

The history of translation is full of cautionary tales, from literary blunders to famously mistranslated video games. — Karen Stollznow, The Conversation, 23 July 2026

The episode has made Mansell a folk hero in parts of the dive world and a cautionary tale in others. — Kate Waxman, Sun Sentinel, 19 July 2026

Yet in a couple of years, the Golden Era would start, and Barry Zito would become a beloved part of franchise lore rather than a cautionary tale. — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 15 July 2026

With its 325 million subscribers and the popularity of each of its recent cautionary tales, could Netflix capsize the cruise industry? — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 14 July 2026

The filmmaker said there’s a cautionary element to the Reckoning story, examining the dark side of celebrity worship. — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 8 July 2026