lowly

[ loh-lee ]

/ ˈloʊ li /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR lowly ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, low·li·er, low·li·est.

humble in station, condition, or nature: a lowly cottage.

low in growth or position.

humble in attitude, behavior, or spirit; meek.

adverb

in a low position, manner, or degree: a lowly placed shelf.

in a lowly manner; humbly.

in a quiet voice; softly: to converse lowly.

Nearby words

lowlander, lowlands, lowlife, lowlight, lowlihead, lowly, lown, lowndes, lowp, lowrider, lowriding

Origin of lowly

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at low¹, -ly

SYNONYMS FOR lowly

3 modest, simple, unpretentious.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR lowly ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

low·li·ly, adverblow·li·ness, nounun·low·ly, adjective

Can be confused

low lowly

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for lowly

Lowly freshman congressmen could now buck the speaker, as one rich guy could fund their next campaign.
Speed Read: Kenneth Vogel’s ‘Big Money’ Shows How PACs Control Politics|William O’Connor|June 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He was a lowly country lawyer and she a Kentucky aristocrat who had come to visit her older sister in Illinois.
Lincoln in Love|Jerome Charyn|February 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
With three years left to his presidency, we are reduced to the lowly ambition of executive orders.
Obama’s Speech Was Missing Shared Goals for America’s Future|Mark McKinnon|January 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One of the best presidential orators in history, Obama was reduced to the lowly ambition of executive orders.
Obama’s Speech Was Missing Shared Goals for America’s Future|Mark McKinnon|January 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He also took aim at senior Republican figures and lowly GOP Hill staffers.
Exclusive: White House Official Fired for Tweeting Under Fake Name|Josh Rogin|October 23, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It euer instructeth men too shewe them selues most lowly, humile, and obesaunt toward their Prynce.
A Very Pleasaunt & Fruitful Diologe Called the Epicure|Desiderius Erasmus
First let me be independent of the great; I will then be the champion of the lowly.
Lucretia, Complete|Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Slowly it went with majestic tread, passing by the harbour, and sailors on the ships bowed down in lowly adoration.
Saronia|Richard Short
Exert your royal gifts in exalting only the lowly and humbling only the proud.
Notes of a Son and Brother|Henry James
He did not wait to see more, but passed on with all evidences of disinterest in this lowly abode.
Merton of the Movies|Harry Leon Wilson

British Dictionary definitions for lowly

lowly

/ (ˈləʊlɪ) rare /

adjective -lier or -liest

humble or low in position, rank, status, etc

full of humility; meek

simple, unpretentious, or plain

adverb

in a low or lowly manner

Derived Forms

lowliness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

lowly

adjective, low·li·er, low·li·est.

adverb

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of lowly

SYNONYMS FOR lowly

Related forms

Can be confused

Examples from the Web for lowly

British Dictionary definitions for lowly

lowly

adjective -lier or -liest

adverb

Derived Forms