different between chary vs wily

English

Etymology

From Middle English chari, charre, charri, chary, Early Middle English cearig, chari? (“concerned with, diligent; sad, sorrowful; of a person: cherished, loved”), from Old English ?eari? (“careful; pensive; chary, wary; anxious, sad, sorrowful; dire, grievous”), from Proto-West Germanic *karag (“anxious; sad”), from Proto-Germanic *kar? + *-gaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *?eh?r- (“exclamation; voice”) + *-kos (suffix forming adjectives with the meaning ‘pertaining to; typical of’)); analysable as care +? -y.

The English word is cognate with Danish karrig (“miserly, stingy”), Dutch karig (“austere, scant, sparing”), Norwegian karrig (“barren; meagre; poor”), Old High German charag, karag (“sparing”) (modern German karg (“barren; meagre, poor”)), Old Saxon carag, karag, Swedish karg (“austere; barren; hungry; needy, poor”). See further at care.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?t????i/
• (General American, Mary–marry–merry distinction) IPA^(key): /?t????i/
• (General American, Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /?t???i/
• Rhymes: -???i
• Homophone: cherry (in accents with the Mary-marry-merry merger)
• Hyphenation: cha?ry

Adjective

chary (comparative charier, superlative chariest)

1. Careful, cautious, shy, wary.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:cautious

   Antonyms: unchary; see also Thesaurus:careless
2. Excessively particular or fussy about details; fastidious.

   Antonym: unchary
3. Not disposed to give freely; not lavish; frugal, sparing.

   Antonym: unchary
4. (obsolete) Cared for, regarded as precious; cherished.

   Antonym: unchary

Derived terms

Translations

Adverb

chary (comparative more chary, superlative most chary)

1. Synonym of charily: carefully, cautiously, warily.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:cautiously

   Antonyms: carelessly, incautiously, uncarefully, uncautiously, unwarily

References

Anagrams

• -archy, archy

English

Etymology

From Middle English wily, wiley, wyly; equivalent to wile +? -y.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /wa?.li/
• Rhymes: -a?li
• Homophone: Wylie
• Hyphenation: wi?ly

Adjective

wily (comparative wilier or more wily, superlative wiliest or most wily)

1. Sly, cunning, full of tricks

   Horatio's new girlfriend is a wily coquette and poor Horatio is too smitten to see it.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:wily

Derived terms

• wilily
• wiliness

Translations