familiarly

English

Etymology

From Middle English familierly, equivalent to familiar +‎ -ly.[1][2]

Pronunciation

  • (General American) IPA(key): /fəˈmɪl.jɚ.li/, /fəˈmɪl.i.ɚ.li/
  • Audio (General American):(file)

Adverb

familiarly (comparative more familiarly, superlative most familiarly)

  1. With a lack of formality:
    1. In a casual or informal manner, as with a close acquaintance; especially when such behavior may be considered inappropriate.
      He spoke familiarly to the hotel porter.
      1. (dated) In an inappropriately sexual or romantic manner.
    2. (linguistics) Colloquially; of common or vernacular speech, as opposed to scholarly language.
      The giant panda, familiarly known as a "panda bear", is not actually a bear at all.
  2. With knowledge or experience:
    1. In a manner prompting recognition or recollection.
      The voice from downstairs sounded familiarly like a foghorn, and right away he knew that Uncle Fred had arrived.
    2. In a manner expressing comprehensive or intimate knowledge.
      The instructor spoke familiarly about the dangerous conditions on the mountain during the winter.

Translations

References

  1. ^ “familiērlī, adv.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  2. ^ “familiarly, adv.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.