aware

adjective

ə-ˈwer 

1

: having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge

be aware of the danger

aware of the latest advances in medicine

2

archaic : watchful, wary

Synonyms

• alive
• apprehensive
• cognizant
• conscious
• mindful
• sensible
• sentient
• ware
• witting

Choose the Right Synonym for aware

aware, cognizant, conscious, sensible, alive, awake mean having knowledge of something.

aware implies vigilance in observing or alertness in drawing inferences from what one experiences.

aware of changes in climate

cognizant implies having special or certain knowledge as from firsthand sources.

not fully cognizant of the facts

conscious implies that one is focusing one's attention on something or is even preoccupied by it.

conscious that my heart was pounding

sensible implies direct or intuitive perceiving especially of intangibles or of emotional states or qualities.

sensible of a teacher's influence

alive adds to sensible the implication of acute sensitivity to something.

alive to the thrill of danger

awake implies that one has become alive to something and is on the alert.

a country always awake to the threat of invasion

Examples of aware in a Sentence

Are you aware how important you are to me?

She is one of the most aware people I know.

Recent Examples on the Web

Doing this series, it’s made me if anything more aware of how much was destroyed, what was going on culturally at that time, the artists and architects and filmmakers at the time who had to go into exile. —Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 June 2024

Moffo said officers had been made aware that the vehicle was involved in an incident involving shots that were fired in Hartford earlier in the day. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 25 June 2024

For those who aren’t aware, Fred and I did our first collaboration back in 2016 for the Angelic 2 the Core album. —Liza Lentini, SPIN, 24 June 2024

Additionally, the governments are only aware of pilgrims who have registered and travelled to Mecca as part of their country’s quota – more deaths are feared among unregistered pilgrims. —Zahid Mahmood, CNN, 23 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English iwar, iwarre, going back to Old English gewær, going back to West Germanic *gawaro- (whence Old Saxon & Old High German giwar "cognizant"), from *ga-, perfective, associative and collective prefix + Germanic *waro- "cognizant, watchful" — more at com-, ware entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing aware

• hyper-aware
• self-aware

Kids Definition

aware

adjective

ə-ˈwa(ə)r 

-ˈwe(ə)r

: having or showing understanding or knowledge : conscious

awareness noun