hardly
Barely, only just, almost not.
Adverb 3 meanings
Barely, only just, almost not.
“They hardly ever watch television.”
Certainly not; not at all.
“I hardly think they'll come in this bad weather!”
Harshly, severely; in a hard manner.
Interjection 1 meaning
Not really.
“I think the Beatles are a really overrated band. ― Hardly!”
Etymology
From Middle English hardely, hardliche, from Old English heardlīċe (“boldly; hardily; without ease; in a way that causes pain; not easily; only by degrees”), equivalent to hard + -ly. Compare Dutch hardelijk, German härtlich.
Similar and opposite words
HARDLY at a glance
HARDLY has 6 letters and scores 13 points in Scrabble (H 4 + A 1 + R 1 + D 2 + L 1 + Y 4) and 12 in Words With Friends, before board bonuses. It ranks #2,773 by how often it appears in everyday English. It is valid in ENABLE, NWL2023, Collins/SOWPODS.
Rhymes with hardly
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