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.
"The shops, restaurants and cafes are fairly empty... Interestingly on Sunday when there was still smoke, there were people brave enough to sit outside on terraces."
From BBC ● Jul. 28, 2026
During the same period, personal environmental behaviors remained fairly stable.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 25, 2026
Hartig told lawmakers that while the White House report is under review, "we unwaveringly attest that it does not fairly or accurately characterize the full body of work at the museum."
From Barron's ● Jul. 24, 2026
The required investment in training is fairly minimal relative to the potential rewards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
For example, most ballads are sung legato, and most marches are played fairly staccato or marcato, whether they are marked that way or not.
From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones
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.
