softly

American

[sawft-lee, soft‐] / sɔft li, sɒft‐ /

adverb

in a low pitch or volume; quietly.

We spoke softly so as not to wake the baby.
Jazz was playing softly in the background.
Music. with a smoothly subdued and gentle sound.

In this passage, the horns exit softly as the violins become more vibrant.
in a way that is neither harsh nor glaring to the eye.

The room was softly lit with a dimmed chandelier and six flickering candles.
in a gentle, warm-hearted, or compassionate manner; tenderly; sympathetically.

She softly embraced her son and reassured him of her love.

First recorded in 1200–50; soft ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

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Softli is a former personnel executive with Carolina and St. Louis.

From Seattle Times • Dec. 29, 2010

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023