heavily
Americanadverb
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with a great weight or burden.
a heavily loaded wagon.
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in a manner suggestive of carrying a great weight; ponderously; lumberingly.
He walked heavily across the room.
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in an oppressive manner.
Cares weigh heavily upon him.
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to suffer heavily.
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densely; thickly.
heavily wooded.
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in large amounts or in great quantities; very much.
It rained heavily on Tuesday.
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without animation or vigor; in a dull manner; sluggishly.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of heavily
First recorded before 900; Middle English hevyly, Old English hefiglīce; equivalent to heavy + -ly
Explanation
Anything that happens heavily is weighty, extensive, or labored. A car falling off its jack will crash heavily to the ground, and if you are a new runner, you'll be breathing heavily after the first mile. Sometimes the adverb heavily simply describes the action of something heavy — like kids' feet pounding heavily up the stairs, or an airplane landing heavily on the runway. There's also the "large amount" or "a lot" meaning, like when rain falls heavily or a director is heavily influenced by the cartoons of her childhood. Breathing heavily, on the other hand, means "with effort."
Vocabulary lists containing heavily
"Too Young to Drive?" and "Rules of the Road"
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Spelling Practice 1, Unit 5
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In Arcadia and other heavily Asian cities in the San Gabriel Valley, the charges have brought questions about what exactly China is doing, along with alarm about a potential backlash in the United States.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
Your column, appropriately so for its purpose, focuses heavily on financial literacy, and some of your writers brag about how savvy they are.
From MarketWatch • May 13, 2026
Alibaba Group’s profitability remained under pressure as the Chinese tech giant continues to invest heavily in artificial intelligence and fend off intense competition in the food-delivery space.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
China is the world’s largest soybean importer, relying heavily on imports to feed its massive hog and poultry industries.
From Barron's • May 12, 2026
There was a heavily armed woman on the cover, screaming.
From "The Line Tender" by Kate Allen
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
