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

lowlands, lowlife, lowlight, lowlihead, lowliness, lowly, lown, lowndes, lowness, lowp, lowrider

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

Can be confusedlow 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 Formslowliness, 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

Word Origin and History for lowly

lowly

c.1300 (adv.); late 14c. (adj.) "humble," from low (adj.) + -ly.

lowly

adjective, low·li·er, low·li·est.

adverb

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of lowly

Examples from the Web for lowly

British Dictionary definitions for lowly

lowly

adjective -lier or -liest

adverb

Word Origin and History for lowly

lowly