cautioned

1. 1
   verb

   Past participle of caution.

   Workers had been cautioned about the fumes before entering the tank.

   She was cautioned by her attorney before answering any questions.

   Note

   The form that does the work in perfect and passive constructions: had been cautioned, was cautioned by her attorney. It is spelled exactly like the simple past (the officer cautioned them), so the auxiliary is what tells them apart. Sport adds a second meaning: a cautioned player has been shown a yellow card by the referee, a warning given on the field rather than the police status.

2. 2
   adjective

   Having received a formal warning from the police as an alternative to prosecution.

   Like a yellow card in soccer: an official warning that stops short of being sent off.

   A cautioned suspect has admitted wrongdoing without facing a full trial.

   Employers sometimes ask whether a cautioned applicant disclosed the earlier warning.

   Note

   A status word rather than a quality: someone either is cautioned or is not, so it takes no very or more. It usually stands before a noun, as in a cautioned suspect or a cautioned applicant, and names a record rather than a mood. Do not confuse it with cautious. A cautioned driver has been warned, which says nothing about how carefully they drive.

Showing meanings only. Show all 2