variants
also leary
as in wary
feeling or showing a lack of trust in someone or something
a leery attitude She seemed a little leery about the proposal. They were leery of their neighbors.
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Recent Examples of leery
To an already leery viewer, Meghan lacking the openness and vulnerability that would allow a naysayer to connect with and change their opinion of her doesn’t help.
—
Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Mar. 2025
But these aren’t normal times, and a scattering of headwinds on the horizon have made Federal Reserve officials leery of easing monetary policy for fear that the inflation fight isn’t over.
—Jeff Cox, CNBC, 11 June 2025
In 2017, during his first term, Trump wanted to hold a military parade, but Pentagon officials were leery of appearing to politicize the armed forces.
—Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today, 13 June 2025
Back in 2015, the Arab states of the Gulf region were leery of a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for leery
Brande Victorian, The Hollywood Reporter, 5 Mar. 2025
But these aren’t normal times, and a scattering of headwinds on the horizon have made Federal Reserve officials leery of easing monetary policy for fear that the inflation fight isn’t over.
—Jeff Cox, CNBC, 11 June 2025
In 2017, during his first term, Trump wanted to hold a military parade, but Pentagon officials were leery of appearing to politicize the armed forces.
—Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today, 13 June 2025
Back in 2015, the Arab states of the Gulf region were leery of a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal.
—Arash Azizi, The Atlantic, 12 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for leery
Recent Examples of Synonyms for leery
Adjective
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Judge, always wary of self-congratulation, downplayed his contributions.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
25 July 2025
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Safeties will be wary of the 221-pounder, enhancing Herbert’s long-ball options.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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Some analysts, including those at Barclays, have also pointed out that there could be potential deceleration in the second half, keeping cautious ratings despite the company’s optimistic outlook.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
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Aston Martin Formula One driver Fernando Alonso has revealed a cautious approach in the wet-weather racing argument after the previous race at Spa-Francorchamps saw the FIA delay the race start by 80 minutes due to rain.—
Saajan Jogia,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Some students might be tempted to argue against it entirely, assuming that admissions officers will favor this kind of response or be skeptical of those who express too favorable views of the technology.—
Christopher Rim,
Forbes.com,
30 July 2025
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LeCun, who has been openly skeptical that current approaches to AI will lead to human-level AI, let alone superintelligence, has been increasingly sidelined in Meta’s drive to develop AI models and products.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
29 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Leery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/leery. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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