DictionaryRoot: -ly
English
-ly
in a particular way
Forms
- -ly
- -li- — A spelling sometimes used before another ending.
Origin
Old English -lice, related to lic, “body” or “form,” and the ending that became adjective-forming -ly.
Note
An expression meaning roughly “in the form of” developed into a general way to describe how something happens.
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adverb
eventually
In the end, after some time or events.
Etymology
The adjective concerns what emerges as an outcome. Eventually places an event at that later result, after intervening time or developments.