brotherly
English
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈbɹʌð.ə.li/
Audio (Southern England): (file) - (US) IPA(key): /ˈbɹʌð.ɚ.li/
Etymology 1
From Middle English brotherly, from Old English brōþorlīċ, from Proto-Germanic *brōþurlīkaz, equivalent to brother + -ly (adjectival suffix). Cognate with Dutch broederlijk (“brotherly”), German brüderlich (“brotherly”), Swedish broderlig (“brotherly”).
Adjective
brotherly (comparative more brotherly, superlative most brotherly)
- Of or characteristic of brothers.
- brotherly love
- 1816 June – 1817 April/May (date written), [Mary Shelley], chapter 15, in Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: […] [Macdonald and Son] for Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, published 1 January 1818, →OCLC:
- Do not despair. To be friendless is indeed to be unfortunate, but the hearts of men, when unprejudiced by any obvious self-interest, are full of brotherly love and charity.
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
of or characteristic of brothers
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Etymology 2
From Middle English brotherly, equivalent to brother + -ly (adverbial suffix).
Adverb
brotherly (comparative more brotherly, superlative most brotherly)
- In the manner of a brother, as a brother, as brothers.
- 1908 February 19, Jack London, The Iron Heel, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., →OCLC:
- "What honest man, who is not insane, would take lost women and thieves into his house to dwell with him sisterly and brotherly?"
Anagrams
Middle English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Old English brōþorlīċ, from Proto-Germanic *brōþurlīkaz; equivalent to brother + -ly (adjectival suffix). The adverb was derived from the adjective in the Middle English period from brother + -ly (adverbial suffix).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈbroːðərliː/
Adjective
brotherly (rare)
Descendants
- English: brotherly
References
- “brọ̄̆therlī, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 21 February 2019.
Adverb
brotherly
- In a brotherly way; in a way like a brother.
Descendants
- English: brotherly
References
- “brọ̄̆therlī, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 21 February 2019.