warning
[noun]
Synonyms: caution, advice, alarm, alert, notification, omen, sign, tip-off

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Related Idioms: flea (or word) in the ear, word to the wise
Related Words: advice, counsel, guidance, recommendation, hint, suggestion, tip

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English Thesaurus: warn, give somebody a warning, alert, tip somebody off, caution, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. warn‧ing¹ S3 W2 /ˈwɔːnɪŋ $ ˈwɔːrn-/ noun

1. [uncountable and countable] something, especially a statement, that tells you that something bad, dangerous, or annoying might happen so that you can be ready or avoid it
warning of
a warning of floods
warning about
warnings about the dangers of smoking
warning against
This experience should serve as a warning against complacency.
warning to
a warning to pregnant women not to drink alcohol
a warning that grey squirrels are threatening the existence of red squirrels

2. [countable] a statement telling someone that if they continue to behave in an unsatisfactory way, they will be punished:
The Surrey team were given a warning last year for repeated offences.
I’m giving you a final warning – don’t be late again.
written/verbal warning

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. warning² adjective [only before noun]

1. a warning action or thing tells you that something bad or dangerous might happen:
Red warning lights were flashing.
The government ignored all the warning signs.
a warning look/glance
She said nothing but gave him a warning look.

2. warning bell/bells used to say that something makes someone start to be worried or careful about something
a warning bell rings/sounds
As she read his letter, warning bells began to sound in her head.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

warning
noun
ADJ. awful, dire, grim, ominous, stark, stern, strong There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.
urgent | adequate, advance, ample, due, early, fair, prior I need advance warning of how many people to cater for.
clear, direct | coded The explosion came 20 minutes after a coded warning to police.
initial | final The referee fave him a final warning.
formal, government, official | salutary, timely, useful The team's defeat is a salutary warning before the World Cup.
friendly | veiled Her words sounded like a veiled warning.
audible, visual There is an audible warning when a certain speed is exceeded.
verbal, written His employers have placed him on final written warning.
air-raid, bomb, fire, flood, gale, hazard, storm There are 39 severe flood warnings on 22 rivers across the country.
health, safety Every cigarette packet carries a health warning.
VERB + WARNING give (sb), issue The police have issued a warning about pickpockets.
shout (out), sound The sirens sound a warning when fighter planes are sighted. The strike sounded a warning to all employers in the industry.
reiterate, repeat | be, serve as Let this be a warning to you not to trespass on my land again! What happened to him should serve as a warning to all dishonest politicians. | get, receive | ignore | heed They failed to heed a warning about the dangerous currents in the river.
WARNING + VERB come The warning came just minutes before the bomb exploded.
sound On 2 April 1916 air-raid warnings sounded throughout Edinburgh.
WARNING + NOUN notice, sign Red marks on the skin may be a warning sign for this disease.
bell, device, light, signal, system
PREP. in ~ The dog growled in warning as we approached.
without ~ He left his wife without warning.
~ about a warning about teaching children to swim
~ against a warning against complacency
~ of They sent us fair warning of their arrival.
~ to The police issued a warning to all drug users in the city.
PHRASES a word of warning He gave us a word of warning about going out alone at night.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

warning

give a warning
He slammed on the brakes without giving any warning.
issue a warning (=officially warn people)
The government issued a warning about eating raw eggs.
deliver/sound a warning (=give a public warning)
The chairman sounded a warning that jobs could be lost.
heed a warning (=take notice of it)
Drivers failed to heed warnings about fog.
ignore a warning
He had ignored their warning to stay in the car.
advance/prior warning
Workers were given no advance warning of the closure.
fair warning
He was given fair warning that such behaviour would not be tolerated.
a stern warning
I got a stern warning against giving false information to the police.
a stark warning
Cigarette packets carry the stark warning ‘smoking kills’.
a health warning (=a warning that something is bad for your health)
All tobacco products must carry a health warning.
a flood/gale/tornado warning
A flood warning has been issued for the River Wye in Herefordshire.
without (any) warning
Police fired into the crowd without warning.
a word of warning (=used before telling someone to be careful about something)
A word of warning: don’t use too much glue.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

warn to tell someone about something bad or dangerous that might happen, so that they can avoid it or prevent it:
I warned you about sitting out in the sun too long.
We were warned that there could be delays on the motorway, so we took another route.
give somebody a warning to tell someone that if they continue to behave in an unsatisfactory way, they will be punished:
He’s already been given several warnings about handing in his essays late.
The US gave a warning that if the hostages were not released, it would be forced to take military action.
alert to officially or publicly warn people of possible danger so that they can prevent it or be ready to deal with it:
a campaign to alert people to the dangers of smoking
An anonymous caller alerted the police that a bomb was due to go off.
tip somebody off informal to secretly warn someone about something that is going to happen – used especially about warning the police about a crime:
The police found the drugs after being tipped off by local residents.
Informants tipped the FBI off.
caution formal to warn someone to do or not to do something in order to avoid a dangerous or bad result:
People are being cautioned against using credit cards abroad, in case of fraud.
Health officials have cautioned the public to wash fruit thoroughly before eating it.
forewarn /fɔːˈwɔːn $ fɔːrˈwɔːrn/ [usually passive] formal to warn someone about something that is going to happen, so that you are expecting it or ready for it:
We had been forewarned that the roads weren’t very good.
warning something that you say or do to tell people about danger, or to tell them not to do something:
All cigarette packets carry a government health warning.
She ignored her parents' warnings.
The army issued a warning that anyone who was out on the streets after dark was likely to be shot.
tip-off informal a warning that someone is about to do something, especially one given to the police about a crime:
Police were called to the hotel after a tip-off.
advisory formal an official warning or notice that gives information about a dangerous situation:
The air pollution gets so bad on some days that health advisories are posted at park entrances.
caveat formal a warning that something may not be completely true, effective etc. Also used when pointing out that it is important to remember something:
The woman was offered treatment, but with the caveat that it had only a 30% chance of success.
One caveat is that you must take the goods back to the shop within 14 days.
There is one important caveat to this argument.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

warning something that you say or do to tell people about danger, or to tell them not to do something:
All cigarette packets carry a government health warning.
She ignored her parents' warnings.
The army issued a warning that anyone who was out on the streets after dark was likely to be shot.
caution formal an official warning or a piece of advice telling you to be careful:
Caution: do not install electrical equipment near or around water sources.
The video begins with a caution that you must do some warm-up exercises first.
tip-off informal a warning that someone is about to do something, especially one given to the police about a crime:
Police were called to the hotel after a tip-off.
alert a warning to be ready for possible danger that may happen soon:
Twelve flood alerts have been issued to areas along the River Severn.
a fire alert
The ambulance services were on red alert (=they were ready to take action immediately).
advisory formal an official warning or notice that gives information about a dangerous situation:
The air pollution gets so bad on some days that health advisories are posted at park entrances.
caveat formal a warning that something may not be completely true, effective etc. Also used when pointing out that it is important to remember something:
The woman was offered treatment, but with the caveat that it had only a 30% chance of success.
One caveat is that you must take the goods back to the shop within 14 days.
There is one important caveat to this argument.
a warning sign
Don’t ignore the warning signs of stress.
a warning shot
Troops fired warning shots over the heads of demonstrators.
a warning light
Red warning lights were flashing.
a warning look/glance
She gave me a warning look, but I carried on.
a warning gesture
He put his finger to his lips in a warning gesture.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲