Definition

1. Noun:

   • A statement or event that indicates a possible or impending danger, problem, or other unpleasant situation: A "warning" is information given in advance to allow someone to prepare for or avoid something undesirable.
   • Cautionary advice or admonition: A "warning" can be a piece of advice intended to deter someone from a particular action or behavior.
   • Advance notification, especially of the termination of employment or tenancy: In formal contexts, a "warning" is a notice given before ending a job or agreement.

2. Adjective:

   • Serving to warn: Used to describe something that functions as a caution or alert.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:

  • The weather service issued a storm warning. (The weather service gave advance notice of a coming storm.)
  • He ignored all the warnings about the thin ice. (He did not pay attention to the cautions about the dangerous ice.)
  • She gave her landlord a month's warning before moving out. (She notified her landlord one month in advance of her departure.)

• Adjective:

  • She gave him a warning look. (She looked at him in a way that was meant to caution him.)
  • The sign had a clear warning message. (The sign displayed a message intended to alert people.)

Advanced Usage

• "to take warning": To heed a caution and learn from it, often from another's example.

  • You should take warning from his mistakes. (You should learn caution from the errors he made.)

• "without (a) warning": Suddenly and unexpectedly, with no prior indication.

  • The system crashed without warning. (The system failed suddenly, with no advance sign.)

• "a word of warning": A piece of cautionary advice.

  • A word of warning: the path gets very slippery. (A caution: the path becomes very slippery.)

Variants and Related Words

• Warn (verb): To inform someone in advance of a danger or problem.

  • I tried to warn him about the traffic. (I attempted to alert him about the traffic situation.)

• Warningly (adverb): In a manner that serves as a warning.

  • He shook his head warningly. (He shook his head in a cautioning way.)

Synonyms

• Caution: Care taken to avoid danger or mistakes; a warning.
• Admonition: Authoritative advice or warning.
• Alert: A state of vigilance or a warning signal.
• Notice: Advance notification or warning.

Related Phrases

• Final warning: The last caution before serious consequences occur.

  • This is your final warning; next time you will be suspended. (This is the last caution; the next incident will result in suspension.)

• Warning shot: A shot fired as a signal or threat, not intended to hit.

  • The police fired a warning shot into the air. (The police fired a shot into the air as a deterrent signal.)

Related Idioms

• A warning bell: Something that causes sudden concern or suggests danger.

  • His strange behavior set off warning bells in my mind. (His odd behavior made me suddenly concerned.)

• Let that be a warning to you: Used to tell someone they should learn a lesson from a negative example.

  • He was fined for speeding, so let that be a warning to you. (He received a fine for speeding, so you should learn from his example.)

Adjective

1. serving to warn
   • shook a monitory finger at him
   • an exemplary jail sentence

Noun

1. notification of something, usually in advance
   • they gave little warning of their arrival
   • she had only had four days' warning before leaving Berlin
2. cautionary advice about something imminent (especially imminent danger or other unpleasantness)
   • a letter of admonition about the dangers of immorality
   • the warning was to beware of surprises
   • his final word of advice was not to play with matches
3. a message informing of danger
   • a warning that still more bombs could explode