aware

adjective \ ə-ˈwer \

Updated on: 30 Nov 2017

Definition of aware

1 : having or showing realization, perception, or knowledge

be aware of the danger

aware of the latest advances in medicine

2 archaic : watchful, wary

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awareness

noun

See aware defined for English-language learners

See aware defined for kids

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 of aware from the Web

David Habich, a spokesman for the FBI, said the agency was aware of the incident concerning Senator Paul.

— thomas novelly, The Courier-Journal, "Man accused of assaulting Sen. Rand Paul is a Bowling Green doctor and neighbor," 5 Nov. 2017
According to Johnson, the Chiefs — who rank 28th in the league in rush defense (131.1 yards per game) — are aware of the emphasis that must be placed on bottling up the league’s second-best rush offense (150.6 yards per game).

— terez a. paylor, kansascity, "Chiefs’ Derrick Johnson is gaining confidence in surgically-repaired Achilles," 4 Nov. 2017
Doctors have become more aware of the financial stressors, and are incorporating counseling financial counseling alongside treatment.

— andrea k. mcdaniels, baltimoresun.com, "Cost of breast cancer burdensome for many patients," 1 Nov. 2017
Allardyce quickly became aware of the need for an anchorman in the middle of the park, and set about searching for a plug to the hole in his midfield in the January transfer window just weeks after his appointment.

— SI.com, "'He Comes From Serbia...': The Impact of Luka Milivojevic & How He Stepped Into Mile Jedinak's Shoes," 31 Oct. 2017
Mnuchin was aware of Quarles’s concerns about Warsh, the people said.

— jennifer jacobs, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Leans Toward Powell for Fed With Announcement Next Week," 28 Oct. 2017
Oregon wildlife and health officials are warning beachgoers to be aware of sick and stranded California sea lions at the coast and to keep their distance.

— andrew theen, OregonLive.com, "State warns of sick, stranded sea lions on Oregon coast," 26 Oct. 2017
Which, as virtually any current observer of Congress is aware, means the case has about as much chance of proceeding as the Cassidy-Collins health-care bill.

— tina nguyen, The Hive, "Could a Constitutional Challenge Cost Trump His Business Empire?," 19 Oct. 2017
Garmin is aware of the issue and is working on a fix for it, and the company advised me to charge the device fully before turning it off and back on again.

— valentina palladino, Ars Technica, "Vivoactive 3 review: Garmin’s often the underdog, often the better choice," 12 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'aware.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of aware

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 co-, ¹ware

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

aware Synonyms

Synonyms

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

Antonyms

insensible, oblivious, unaware, unconscious, unmindful, unwitting

Related Words

alert, attentive, careful, cautious, heedful, observant, open-eyed, regardful, safe, vigilant, wary, watchful, wide-awake; hyperaware, hyperconscious

Near Antonyms

careless, heedless, inattentive, incautious, mindless, unguarded, unheeding, unwary

Synonym Discussion of 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

AWARE Defined for English Language Learners

aware

adjective

Definition of aware for English Language Learners

: knowing that something (such as a situation, condition, or problem) exists
: feeling, experiencing, or noticing something (such as a sound, sensation, or emotion)
: knowing and understanding a lot about what is happening in the world or around you