reluctantly

[ri-luhk-tuhnt-lee]

adverb

1. without really wanting to; unwillingly.

   I told her to take a break, just for one moment, and she reluctantly pulled away from her work.

Other Word Forms

• half-reluctantly adverb
• unreluctantly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of reluctantly¹

reluctant ( def. ) + -ly

Example Sentences

So several years ago, I reluctantly became a soccer mom, shivering on fields at 7:30 a.m. on Saturdays and rearranging our child care schedule for my sons’ practices.

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The American Fund — or simply the Fund, as it came to be known — had been reluctantly established in 1922 by Charles Garland, who had inherited $1 million but refused it on ethical grounds.

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On Monday Uefa confirmed it had "reluctantly" approved two European league matches to be played abroad.

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Unlike most politicians, who dress to the nines, Burton wore ties reluctantly and showed up at meetings with governors wearing guayaberas, rarely with his hair in place.

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Under duress, the father reluctantly retrieved the ball from his son and handed it over, much to the shock and dismay of onlookers.

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Related Words

• carefully 
• cautiously 
• hesitantly www.thesaurus.com
• unwillingly www.thesaurus.com
• warily