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
-
His playing has now come to be an omen of danger, so visitors who hear drums playing should be wary.—
Sophie Friedman,
AFAR Media,
22 Oct. 2025
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The new real estate series sees the Scott twins help wary buyers grapple with commitment issues to possibly make the biggest purchase of their lives.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
22 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
-
Many chief financial officers are investing in AI while still taking a measured approach—one that may seem overly cautious from the perspective of chief information and technology officers.—
Sheryl Estrada,
Fortune,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Snow showers throughout the week; travelers advised to remain cautious due to potential slick conditions.—
Joe Edwards,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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This careful tiptoeing is probably because the scissor artwork was never meant to be sold at a wider scale.—
Samantha Allen,
Them.,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Without the guardrails and protections provided by traditional banks, who are beholden to regulators and the federal government, disaster can ensue, according to Milgram, who has long been skeptical of the private credit market.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
20 Oct. 2025
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Jeremy Davies also returns as their father, Terrence, at first skeptical as all parents are in these things but then finding his own emotional hook to give dad some real human emotion as the mystery deepens regarding his wife’s death.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Divided by borders, and further fragmented by custom and belief into tribelets of ideology, each suspicious and distrustful of the other.—
Katie Bain,
Billboard,
3 Oct. 2025
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When the Soloviev Group bought the Shelter Island Heights Pharmacy in March 2022, the local reactions ranged from cautiously optimistic to openly distrustful.—
Kim Velsey,
Curbed,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Their watchful eyes and swift response can make all the difference in a water emergency.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Oct. 2025
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His Emmys keep a watchful eye from beside his TV.—
Katherine Laidlaw,
HubSpot,
10 Oct. 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
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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 26 Oct. 2025.
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