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truly
[ troo-lee ]
/ Ëtru li /
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adverb
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Origin of truly
historical usage of truly
The English adverb truly is obviously composed of the adjective true and the suffix -ly, which is used to form adverbs as well as adjectives (such as friendly ). The Old English form is trĂ©owlĂce, which means âfaithfully,â formed from trĂ©owe âfaithful, trustworthyâ and the adverb suffix -lĂce, which becomes -ly in modern English.
Old English -lĂce ultimately derives from the Germanic noun lÄ«kom âbody, form, appearance.â This Old English suffix means something like âhaving the form or appearance of,â and trĂ©owlĂce therefore means âappearing faithful, looking trustworthy.â
The Romance languages (such as Spanish, Italian, French) have chosen mind over body in forming adverbs. In Spanish, claro means âclear,â and its adverb is claramente; likewise, Italian chiaro and chiaramente. In Latin this would be a phrase composed of the noun mÄns âmindâ and the adjective clÄrus âclearâ: clÄrÄ mente âwith a clear mind.â Even today Spanish (and Portuguese) maintain mente in its original noun sense (and not as an adverb suffix) in a chain of adverbs: thus âdistinctly and clearlyâ is distinta y claramente in Spanish ( distinta e claramente in Portuguese), a usage that also existed in Old Italian and Provençal.
Old English -lĂce ultimately derives from the Germanic noun lÄ«kom âbody, form, appearance.â This Old English suffix means something like âhaving the form or appearance of,â and trĂ©owlĂce therefore means âappearing faithful, looking trustworthy.â
The Romance languages (such as Spanish, Italian, French) have chosen mind over body in forming adverbs. In Spanish, claro means âclear,â and its adverb is claramente; likewise, Italian chiaro and chiaramente. In Latin this would be a phrase composed of the noun mÄns âmindâ and the adjective clÄrus âclearâ: clÄrÄ mente âwith a clear mind.â Even today Spanish (and Portuguese) maintain mente in its original noun sense (and not as an adverb suffix) in a chain of adverbs: thus âdistinctly and clearlyâ is distinta y claramente in Spanish ( distinta e claramente in Portuguese), a usage that also existed in Old Italian and Provençal.
Words nearby truly
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
How to use truly in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for truly
truly
/ (ËtruËlÉȘ) /
adverb
in a true, just, or faithful manner
(intensifier)a truly great man
indeed; really
See also yours truly
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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