incautious

adjective

in·​cau·​tious (ˌ)in-ˈkȯ-shəs How to pronounce incautious (audio)
: lacking in caution : careless
an incautious remark
incautiously adverb
incautiousness noun

Examples of incautious in a Sentence

He offended several people with his incautious remarks. Their incautious behavior is going to get them into trouble someday.
Recent Examples on the Web Yet that may send the message that both borrowers and lenders can continue pursuing incautious practices in the expectation of a bailout. Keith Bradsher, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2023 And of course, panic made people incautious. Los Angeles Times, 22 Mar. 2022 His father, Chuck, played with an incautious tenacity by Patton Oswalt, has been desperately trying to get a hold of him. Mike Postalakis, SPIN, 8 Aug. 2022 The Spanish field commander, a famously incautious general named Manuel Fernández Silvestre, perished in the melee, possibly by suicide. Frederic Wehrey, The New York Review of Books, 18 Dec. 2021 As the vaccinated and the incautious head out on vacation there has been a run on rental cars in Hawaii that has pushed rates for rental cars above $200 per day. Annie White, Car and Driver, 30 Apr. 2021 Pence has far more practice, and a rare gift at translating some of the president’s more callous, inflammatory or incautious statements into ordinary GOP-speak. Todd J. Gillman, Dallas News, 8 Oct. 2020 And while the easing varied country to country, many leaders made clear that things could be shut down again — if citizens grew suddenly too incautious. Jason Horowitz, BostonGlobe.com, 4 May 2020 President Trump, confined to the Rose Garden a short while later, conducted a news conference heavy on characteristic self-congratulation, periodic misrepresentation and medically incautious handshakes. Matt Flegenheimer, New York Times, 15 Mar. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'incautious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1703, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of incautious was circa 1703

Dictionary Entries Near incautious

Cite this Entry

“Incautious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/incautious. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

incautious

adjective
in·​cau·​tious (ˈ)in-ˈkȯ-shəs How to pronounce incautious (audio)
: not cautious : rash
incautiously adverb
incautiousness noun
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