visserligen

Swedish

Etymology

Partly from Old Swedish visselika, partly from Middle Low German wisseliken. The -r- is due to the analogical influence of adverbs like innerligen (innerly) and veterligen (as far as one knows). By surface analysis, viss (certain) +‎ -lig (adjectival suffix) +‎ -en (adverbial suffix).

Pronunciation

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Adverb

visserligen

  1. surely, certainly, admittedly Signals a concession and in the following clause a counterpoint usually headed by men (but), stressing that the speaker is aware of the contradiction, but that it does not invalidate the statement.
    Det gör visserligen att jag blir nästan två timmar för tidigt där, men bättre det och slippa regnet.
    Certainly it will cause me to be there almost two hours early, but rather that and avoid the rain.

Further reading