-ly
a suffix forming adverbs from adjectives: gladly; gradually; secondly.
-ly
American-
a suffix forming adverbs from adjectives: gladly; gradually; secondly.
-
a suffix meaning “every,” attached to certain nouns denoting units of time: hourly; daily.
-
an adjective suffix meaning “-like”: saintly; cowardly.
-ly
1
British
suffix
-
having the nature or qualities of
brotherly
godly
-
occurring at certain intervals; every
daily
yearly
-ly
2
British
suffix
ly
3
British
abbreviation
Etymology
Origin of -ly
Middle English adverb -li, -lich(e), Old English -līce ( -līc adjective suffix + -e adverb suffix); Middle English adjective -li, -ly, -lich(e), Old English -līc (cognate with German -lich ), suffixal use of gelīc “similar to, like”; see origin at like 1
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.
See Examples For:
And below is a list of most common -ly adverbs by author.
From Slate ● Nov. 21, 2013
Again, many words without -ly have the same form, whether adverbs or adjectives.
From An English Grammar by James Witt Sewell
Wonderly, wondirlie, -ly, wondurly, wondyrly, wounderly, woundyrely, adv. wondrously 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, 8.4, 10.1, 11.1, 12.3, 13.5, 14.4, 16.3, 19.1, 20.6, 24.1, 30.25, 31.25.
From Erthe Upon Erthe by Various
Toward, -ly, tō′ward, -li, adj. ready to do or learn: apt.—ns.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) by Various
Also adverbs ending in -ly are not ordinarily made into compound modifiers: nicely kept lawn, securely guarded treasure. b.
From The Century Handbook of Writing by Garland Greever
But will people be driven away from such land by the infrequent floods, or will they accept the occasional inundation, moving away only temporari ly as needed?
From Nature ● Jun. 10, 2018
All galaxies farther away than about 50×106 ly exhibit a red shift in their emitted light that is proportional to distance, with those farther and farther away having progressively greater red shifts.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
In 1958, When Ray Charles played the Harlem Duke Social Club in the predominantly ly black part of town, only the most adventurous whites might turn up.
From New York Times ● Dec. 31, 2013
Alpha Centauri Closest star, 4.2 ly Click again to skip race.
From Slate ● May 16, 2013
Adverbs can come with or without ly, and many, like slow and slowly, exist in both forms.
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
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.
