fairly
Americanadverb
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in a fair manner; justly or honestly; impartially.
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moderately; tolerably.
a fairly heavy rain.
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properly; legitimately.
a claim fairly made.
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Chiefly Southern U.S.
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The wheels fairly spun.
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He slipped off the roof and fairly broke his neck.
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Archaic. clearly; distinctly.
fairly seen.
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Obsolete. gently; softly.
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Obsolete. with respect and courtesy.
adverb
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(not used with a negative) moderately
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as deserved; justly
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(not used with a negative) positively; absolutely
the hall fairly rang with applause
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archaic clearly
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obsolete courteously
Etymology
Origin of fairly
A Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at fair 1, -ly
Explanation
When you do something fairly, you treat everyone with equal consideration. Sharing a pizza fairly between six people is easy: just give each person one slice. A teacher who doesn't treat all students fairly isn't a very good teacher — and a police officer who doesn't act fairly toward all citizens is also doing a poor job. When you behave fairly, you're unbiased and impartial, and you follow the rules. You can also use this adverb to mean "to a large degree" or "reasonably." For example, you could say, "I'm fairly certain that it's going to snow again tomorrow."
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.
By the standards of “Street Fighter,” Ken and Ryu are actually fairly normal — this is a bizarro universe in which Bison dresses like a Nazi fashionista, complete with flowing cape and a peaked cap.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
When it comes to Halloween costumes, creatures are a time-tested crowd favorite, as well as a fairly open-ended prompt that can be left up to interpretation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 15, 2026
The Department for Transport confirmed it had committed to a review, saying it was "vital to ensure travel remains accessible and that passengers are treated fairly".
From BBC ● Oct. 14, 2026
While Dell “is fairly aligned with the AI trade,” he attributed most of its stellar stock performance to its ability to offset memory prices.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 14, 2026
But maybe I'm supposed to lose it, he thought, feeling fairly certain that whatever was coming out of the egg wasn't the kind of thing one would keep for a pet.
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
