incredibly

American  

[in-kred-uh-blee] / ɪnˈkrɛd ə bli /

adverb

1. in a way that is extraordinary, seemingly impossible, or difficult to believe; incredulously.

   Incredibly, we have already raised $750.

2. very; extremely.

   Your hair will be left incredibly soft, supple, and shiny.

   I found the incredibly uncomfortable seats a real distraction—tall people beware.

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Usage

Incredibly and, somewhat less commonly, incredulously can both be used to mean “unbelievably,” as in It was an incredulously/incredibly expensive flight. They both share the roots of in, meaning “not,” and crēdere, meaning “to believe,” so this shared meaning of “not able to be believed” is rooted in their etymology. Beware, however: they both also have other senses that are not synonyms. Incredibly can mean “very” or “extremely,” but incredulously is not used that way: This is an incredibly exciting moment for me. Incredulously can mean “disbelievingly,” but incredibly is not used that way: She stared at the painting incredulously, skeptical of its veracity .

Etymology

Origin of incredibly

First recorded in 1500–10; incredib(le) ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Explanation

You can use the adverb incredibly to mean "extremely," like your best friend's incredibly disturbing Halloween costume. The word incredibly describes anything that is so fantastic, you almost doubt it's real. You might describe an incredibly fast runner or your incredibly strange French teacher. Incredibly can also describe amazement, like incredibly, someone returned your missing wallet, with everything still in it. The Latin root is incredibilis, "that cannot be believed."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

incredibly

On behalf of the Pye family, we would like to thank everyone for their kind words and support at this incredibly sad time.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

"This is an incredibly elite group, and Trevor and Jenny have a history of success, so I haven't exactly come in here and revolutionised anything," McCormick says.

From BBC ● Aug. 10, 2026

“Workers see the headlines, hear about their friends. Crucially they hear about workers having incredibly hard times getting back into jobs, which amplifies the risk of being laid off,” he said.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 10, 2026

“If you look at what Ukraine has done so incredibly well, it’s this innovation through necessity, and it’s innovation at the speed that is near or close to matching the commercial sector,” Driscoll said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

His real name was Herman Sluring; Pickwick was the name Betsie and I used between ourselves because he looked so incredibly like the illustrator’s drawing in our copy of Dickens.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Related Words

• especially
• fabulously
• strangely
• uncommonly