verily
Americanadverb
adverb
Etymology
Origin of verily
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at very, -ly
Explanation
Use the adverb verily when you need an old-fashioned way to say "certainly." For example, you might say, "I verily believe that's the ugliest sweater I've ever seen." You can use the word verily to mean "truthfully," although people may not know what you're talking about, since it's mostly found in very old-fashioned writing, from the Bible to Shakespeare. In fact, Shakespeare is probably the writer most associated with the word verily: "Verily, I swear, 'tis better to be lowly born," he writes in "Henry VIII." The root is Middle English combination of very and ly, originally verraily.
Vocabulary lists containing verily
"The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
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Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
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Tolkien Reading Day, List 4
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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.
It is a tragicomedy, a hybrid of past and present, a pastiche and an original yarn, a verily fun and achingly melancholy novel.
From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 13, 2021
We believe verily to see the goodness of the Lord.
From Washington Times • Apr. 16, 2021
I liketh not the egg of greenish hue, Nor care I for thy cut of proffered ham, So, verily, if to myself be true, I shall not eat thy dish, Sir Sam-I-Am.
From Washington Post • May 16, 2019
Never before has there been a season which, at this late stage, retains the capacity for such multifarious awfulness – verily, the night is dark and full of terrors.
From The Guardian • Apr. 16, 2019
“Verily, verily I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.”
From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson
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.
