1
as in naive
lacking in worldly wisdom or informed judgment
e-mail scams that take advantage of unwary recipients
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in careless
not paying or showing close attention especially for the purpose of avoiding trouble
a dangerous stretch of desert that has claimed many unwary travelers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in susceptible
readily taken advantage of
unwary consumers who unquestioningly swallow the dubious claims of TV pitchmen
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unwary
Rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) have given fraudsters a host of new tools to trick unwary individuals into dishonest schemes.
—
Ranjita Iyer, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
That’s because the agency’s duty is to stand in the way of businesses desiring to push unsafe and ineffective nostrums at unwary consumers, and also in the way of a perverse idea that personal freedom includes the freedom to be gulled by charlatans.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2025
These are unexplainable phenomena scattered throughout the game’s world that can kill an unwary player in an instant.
—Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
The result is that fraudsters have rushed into cryptocurrency, exploiting the complexity and hype to dupe the unwary.
—Hilary Allen, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for unwary
Ranjita Iyer, Forbes, 18 Mar. 2025
That’s because the agency’s duty is to stand in the way of businesses desiring to push unsafe and ineffective nostrums at unwary consumers, and also in the way of a perverse idea that personal freedom includes the freedom to be gulled by charlatans.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 17 Jan. 2025
These are unexplainable phenomena scattered throughout the game’s world that can kill an unwary player in an instant.
—Issy Van Der Velde, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
The result is that fraudsters have rushed into cryptocurrency, exploiting the complexity and hype to dupe the unwary.
—Hilary Allen, Foreign Affairs, 5 Apr. 2023
See All Example Sentences for unwary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unwary
Adjective
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But anyone imagining that this problem will be resolved by taking games beyond international borders is extremely naive.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
23 Oct. 2025
-
In contrast, the late-’90s and early-2000s pop culture era—glittery, naive, and commercially loud—feels like an antidote to endless doom-scrolling.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Additional charges included negligently driving a vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner, endangering property, life, and person, as well as recklessly driving a vehicle in wanton and willful disregard for the safety of persons and property.—
Diane J. Cho,
PEOPLE,
22 Oct. 2025
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Young Christoph wrote in the knowledge that Bonhoeffer’s correspondence was being monitored and that a careless word could have fatal consequences.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
21 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Unsurprisingly, people who live farther north are more susceptible than their southern counterparts because of the shorter daylight hours—so folks in Alaska and New Hampshire would statistically be at higher risk than their counterparts in Texas or Florida, say.—
Maggie O'Neill,
SELF,
20 Oct. 2025
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Some light fabrics are especially susceptible to staining from the minerals in water.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
20 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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De Silva, police noted, was an innocent bystander who was not involved in the quarrel and was not believed to have been the target.—
Liam Quinn,
PEOPLE,
26 Oct. 2025
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So that seemingly innocent Machu Picchu stamp—one of the most popular souvenir stamps around—could be viewed not as a harmless keepsake but as an unauthorized alteration that might jeopardize your ability to travel.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
25 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The New Brunswick house also possessed a history of building code violations and officials have since declared the building to be an unsafe structure, according to NJ Advance Media.—
Julia Bonavita,
FOXNews.com,
27 Oct. 2025
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In making the rule, the CPSC said there were 17 deaths in 2020 and at least 17 deaths in 2021 because of the contribution to unsafe sleeping conditions of infant loungers.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That being said, some travel essentials stay packed and ready—the gear, gadgets, and go-tos that make every trip that much easier.—
Samantha Leal,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Oct. 2025
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With Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy back, things have gotten a lot easier for Kelce.—
Mark Kern,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In the midst of tragedy came a small offering of knowledge from an unsuspecting source.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Oct. 2025
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The elaborate scheme, masterminded by members of four Mafia families in collusion with celebrity athletes, ensnared unsuspecting victims, bleeding them of over $7 million through cunning deception, prosecutors said in the indictment.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The defense also contends that Trump, as a public figure, must show actual malice—proof that the Journal knew its reporting was false or acted with reckless disregard for the truth—and that the complaint fails to do so.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 Oct. 2025
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Western leaders largely dismissed these overt signals, assuming Putin would not be reckless enough to risk crippling sanctions, economic isolation, and a costly war.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Unwary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unwary. Accessed 29 Oct. 2025.
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