careful

/ˈkeəfl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈkerfl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈker-fəl/ (ame, mw)

careful — adjective

1. making sure you do things right and avoid accidents, errors, or injury — for exa

1.形容詞A2
釋義

making sure you do things right and avoid accidents, errors, or injury — for example, looking both ways before you cross a street, or checking your homework twice before handing it in.

例句

Ravi was careful not to spill hot soup on his little sister.

careful not to + infinitive: expressing caution about an action

Be careful when you walk on the icy steps outside the library.

imperative: 'Be careful when…' warning pattern

同義詞
  • cautious

    focuses on avoiding danger or risk; careful is broader and also covers avoiding mistakes.

  • thorough

    emphasises doing every part of a task completely; careful is more about attention during the process.

  • attentive

    stresses watchfulness and noticing details; careful adds the idea of avoiding negative outcomes.

反義詞
  • careless

    the direct opposite — not giving enough attention to what you are doing.

  • reckless

    stronger than careless — taking dangerous risks without thinking about results.

文法句型

be careful + to-infinitive

be careful + not to-infinitive

be careful + when/while + clause

be careful + with + noun

careful + noun

用法筆記

This sense commonly appears in warnings (Be careful!) and in the pattern careful + to-infinitive (She was careful not to break the vase). It also functions as an attributive adjective before nouns such as plan, check, examination, and analysis.

常見錯誤

❌He is a carefully driver.
✅He is a careful driver.
💡careful is an adjective that describes a noun; carefully is an adverb that describes a verb.
❌I careful checked the list.
✅I carefully checked the list.
💡after the verb, use the adverb carefully, not the adjective careful.
❌Be carefully!
✅Be careful!
💡after the linking verb be, use the adjective form, not the adverb.