Make Your Point > Archived Issues > CHARY

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connect today's word to others: If you're chary of something, you're being careful, cautious, and hesitant about it. You might ask a lot of questions about it or take plenty of time to think before you act on it. You might be acting so chary out of __giness: the urge to guard yourself, to keep your own secrets. Perhaps you're on the qu_ v___: alert, aware, on the lookout for some potential danger. Or you might simply be ju____ous: sensible, practical, and wise. (To reveal any word with blanks, give it a click.) make your point with... "CHARY" It's not a coincidence that "chary" looks a little like "care-y." To be chary is to be full of care: to be careful. In other words, when you're chary of something, you're very cautious about something, often because you're worried, concerned, or suspicious. "Chary" can also mean "very careful about details" and "very careful about not wasting things," but those meanings are uncommon today. Pronunciation: CHAIR ee (just like "cherry") Part of speech: Adjective. (Adjectives are describing words, like "large" or "late." They can be used in two ways: 1. Right before a noun, as in "a chary investor." 2. After a linking verb, as in "She was chary of investing.") Other forms: charily How to use it: Remember, even though "chary" means "careful," pronounce the "ch" just like you're saying "cherry." (Or "Chairee," the living chair from Pee-wee's Playhouse!) Usually, we're chary of something: chary of risky moves, chary of praise that seems insincere, chary of attention from the media, chary of any maneuver our rivals make.  We can also be chary of doing something: chary of accepting a verbal offer, chary of revealing too much information, chary of hiring someone before a face-to-face meeting. It's less common, but instead of "chary of," you can say "chary about:" "I'm chary about agreeing too quickly." And you can leave out the preposition and just talk about chary people: chary investors, chary managers, a chary admirer. examples: If you want the locals to be nice to you, be chary of touristy gawking. Don't stand on the sidewalk loudly struggling to pronounce "Kamehameha Avenue." I'm chary of those formulaic, unsolicited messages from girls I barely know. I think they want to sell me their leggings, or their essential oils or whatever. study it now: Look away from the screen to explain the definition in your own words. You’ll know you understand what "chary" means when you can explain it without saying "circumspect" or "thinking ahead." try it out: Fill in the blanks: "(Something risky or concerning) is making (someone) chary." Example: "The principal's habit of embracing trendy ideas, implementing them, and gradually forgetting about them is making the entire staff chary." before you review: Spend at least 20 seconds occupying your mind with the game below. Then try the review questions. Don’t go straight to the review now—let your working memory empty out first. Our game this month is called "Quirky Keepers."  We’ll play with a bunch of bizarre, oddly specific words—words that deserve a place in our vocabulary, even though they're too wacky and rare to explore in full issues of Make Your Point. (I found most of these words in Charles Harrington Elster’s outrageously entertaining book, There’s A Word For It: A Grandiloquent Guide to Life.) Our goal as we play is to squirrel the words away in our memories. So, in each issue, we’ll check out a word; in the following issue, I’ll give you a new example of that word, and you see if you can recall it. We’ll start with short words and work our way up to the six-, seven-, and eight-syllable doozies. See if you can recall the word from the previous issue: It's spring, and you're picnicking. You hear the soft fwooooosh-fwoosh-fwoosh of leafy branches moving in the breeze. What noun describes that beautiful sound? (It's four syllables.)  See the answer by scrolling all the way down. Today, let’s check out the word "nikhedonia," which is the excitement and happiness you feel because you know you're going to win. (It's based on the name of the Greek goddess of victory, Nike, and the Greek word for "pleasure." Notice the similarity to "hedonism" [pleasure-seeking] and "anhedonia" [the inability to experience pleasure.]) Remember, in the next issue I’ll give you an example of nikhedonia, without mentioning the word—and you’ll try to recall it. That'll help you keep it in your memory. review today's word: 1. The opposite of CHARY is A. DARK. B. BRUSQUE. C. CAREFREE. 2. I love to organize things. I love shelves, dividers, and labels. Still, I'm chary of _____. A. my scraggly, disordered, beloved heap of coupons B. shoving stuff into a cabinet and forgetting about it; I do it all the time C. buying any product that lets me accumulate and store things I don't need Answers are below. a final word: Make Your Point is crafted with love and brought to you each weekday morning by Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From Liesl's blog:    36 ways to study words.    Why we forget words, & how to remember them.    How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. To be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. Disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes. Answer to the game question: It's psithurisma, the soft rustling sound of leaves.  Answers to review questions: 1. A 2. C