as in wary
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Recent Examples of gun-shy
The pressure from both the U.S. and China has seemingly made Panama more gun-shy about those ports shifting hands, with numerous officials putting CK Hutchison’s partnership with the Panamanian government under scrutiny.
—
Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 13 Aug. 2025
The writers gave The X-Files an award back in 1996 when the overall Academy was gun-shy about voting for it in Outstanding Drama.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2025
Underneath the puns and pumps was a dress-down of the rom-com that ultimately told the story of a woman who fell in love, came out worse, and became gun-shy.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 30 May 2025
Major studios have grown gun-shy about funding anything remotely risky; even a risk well taken can prompt a knee-jerk, scornful reaction from not only the executives but also the press: The film could, even should, have done better.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 25 Apr. 2025
Nintendo has been famously gun-shy of live-action adaptations — or adaptations in general — after the abysmal 1993 Super Mario Bros. film tanked.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2025
But that ending has yet to be printed: in a documentary climate in which corporations are growing increasingly gun-shy, The Stringer does not yet have a distributor.
—Steven Zeitchik, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
Harris dropped out of the 2020 presidential race early (followed later by her fellow female candidates, senators Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren), and some pundits speculated that Democratic primary voters were gun-shy of nominating another woman after Hillary Clinton’s loss in 2016.
—Kathleen Walsh, Glamour, 21 July 2024
The Price of Entry Apart from elevated risks, there are several other reasons why international firms are likely to remain gun-shy about India.
—Arvind Subramanian, Foreign Affairs, 9 Dec. 2022
Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 13 Aug. 2025
The writers gave The X-Files an award back in 1996 when the overall Academy was gun-shy about voting for it in Outstanding Drama.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2025
Underneath the puns and pumps was a dress-down of the rom-com that ultimately told the story of a woman who fell in love, came out worse, and became gun-shy.
—Mathew Rodriguez, Them., 30 May 2025
Major studios have grown gun-shy about funding anything remotely risky; even a risk well taken can prompt a knee-jerk, scornful reaction from not only the executives but also the press: The film could, even should, have done better.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 25 Apr. 2025
Nintendo has been famously gun-shy of live-action adaptations — or adaptations in general — after the abysmal 1993 Super Mario Bros. film tanked.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 28 Mar. 2025
But that ending has yet to be printed: in a documentary climate in which corporations are growing increasingly gun-shy, The Stringer does not yet have a distributor.
—Steven Zeitchik, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2025
Harris dropped out of the 2020 presidential race early (followed later by her fellow female candidates, senators Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren), and some pundits speculated that Democratic primary voters were gun-shy of nominating another woman after Hillary Clinton’s loss in 2016.
—Kathleen Walsh, Glamour, 21 July 2024
The Price of Entry Apart from elevated risks, there are several other reasons why international firms are likely to remain gun-shy about India.
—Arvind Subramanian, Foreign Affairs, 9 Dec. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gun-shy
Adjective
-
Goodall was wary of doing another documentary on her life in 2017, but was persuaded by National Geographic to do so.—
Emily Krauser,
PEOPLE,
1 Oct. 2025
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This shows that parents and caregivers are growing wary of mounting student loan debt and are reluctant to have their children burdened by it in the future.—
De Elizabeth,
Parents,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Facing ever-higher operations costs, ranchers are leery of investing in an expansion.—
Alina Selyukh,
NPR,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Studios still leery In many ways, television is where the real breakthroughs have happened and continue to happen.—
Scott Malia,
The Conversation,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
During the preview, a mischievous group of young diplodocus splash in the water around a pair of kayaking guests, while other juveniles like the triceratops are more cautious in nature, choosing to stick close to their parents.—
Griff Griffin,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
-
The Dodgers are being cautious.—
Barry M. Bloom,
Sportico.com,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
3 Oct. 2025
-
These treatments require careful and ongoing monitoring.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Burnett urged those who received the calls to stay skeptical of anyone claiming to be a deputy and to not engage in conversation with them.—
David Clarey,
jsonline.com,
6 Oct. 2025
-
Some fans accepted the clarification, while others remained skeptical.—
Amber Corrine,
VIBE.com,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
A number of recent polls found that a majority of voters across parties are distrustful of gerrymandering but are becoming more open to their states going forward with it amid the ongoing redistricting arms race.—
Julia Manchester,
The Hill,
4 Sep. 2025
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Having so many new designers debut at once may actually confuse further an increasingly distrustful client and redirect them toward all-time safe fashion investment purchases.—
Sandra Salibian,
Footwear News,
4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Their watchful eyes and swift response can make all the difference in a water emergency.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
30 Sep. 2025
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In honor of the October 31-holiday, the network has gathered together comedians Patton Oswalt, Rachel Dratch, Leslie Jones and Adam Pally to test their skills in the kitchen — all under the watchful eyes of judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith.—
Dave Quinn,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Though there were some reasons for optimism in Kohl’s report on Wednesday—comparable sales were unchanged in July—the Kohl’s saga remains a show-me story.—
Phil Wahba,
Fortune,
27 Aug. 2025
-
Goldman downgraded the Club stock to hold from buy, saying this is now a show-me story.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
30 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gun-shy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gun-shy. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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