ordinarily

American  

[awr-dn-air-uh-lee, awr-dn-er-uh-lee] / ˌɔr dnˈɛər ə li, ˈɔr dnˌɛr ə li /

adverb

1. most of the time; generally; usually.

   Ordinarily he wakes at seven.

2. in an unexceptional manner or fashion; modestly.

   a wealthy child who was dressed ordinarily.

3. to the usual extent; reasonably.

   to expect someone to be ordinarily honest.

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ordinarily British  

/ ˈɔːdəˌnɛrɪlɪ, ˈɔːdənrɪlɪ /

adverb

1. in ordinary, normal, or usual practice; usually; normally

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Etymology

Origin of ordinarily

First recorded in 1525–35; ordinary + -ly

Example Sentences

And ordinarily, the teams who finish 18th and 19th in the Premier League receive a bye into round two - with the rest of the top-flight teams who avoided relegation.

From BBC • May 28, 2026

Step into your local supermarket, and you may find that those ordinarily humble broccoli bunches or cauliflower heads now carry higher price tags.

From Salon • May 27, 2026

The central bank had just rolled out plans to do things it would never ordinarily do: lending to midsize businesses, purchasing junk bonds and hoovering up Treasury securities at a pace it had never attempted.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 3, 2026

After weeks of bombing and counter-strikes, focus has shifted to the standoff in the Strait of Hormuz, which ordinarily carries around a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas.

From Barron's • Apr. 23, 2026

Finally, in a voice much louder than he ordinarily used, he asked, “Where did you get all this?”

From "Where the Red Fern Grows" by Wilson Rawls

Related Words

• commonly
• customarily
• generally
• normally
• regularly