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Synonyms

weakly

American  
[week-lee] / ˈwik li /

adjective

weaklier, weakliest
  1. weak or feeble in constitution; not robust; sickly.


adverb

  1. in a weak manner.

weakly British  
/ ˈwiːklɪ /

adjective

  1. sickly; feeble

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

adverb

  1. in a weak or feeble manner

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See weak.

Other Word Forms

  • weakliness noun

Etymology

Origin of weakly

First recorded in 1350–1400, weakly is from the Middle English word weekely. See weak, -ly

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“Well, see, I’ve got to get the mail first,” Chip said weakly.

From Literature

“Ida, since I know you’ve read the book,” she said to me weakly, like it was her last request, “could you please read the first chapter today?”

From Literature

Sugars, which bind more weakly, attach through hydrogen bonding.

From Science Daily

When they do not align, the atom is paramagnetic and only weakly magnetized.

From Science Daily

"The challenge is that dark matter interacts so weakly that we need detectors capable of seeing events that might happen once in a year, or even once in a decade," Mahapatra said.

From Science Daily