barely

Meanings

1. 1
   adv

   Almost not at all; only just.

   The plane is so far away now that I can barely see it.

2. 2
   adv

   By a very small amount.

   She barely passed the exam, scoring just one point above the minimum.

3. 3
   adv

   Only a very short time before; just now.

   They had barely arrived when it started to rain.

From Middle English baarly, bareliche, barely, barly, from Old English bærlīċe, equivalent to bare + -ly. Compare Danish bare (“only, just”), Norwegian bare (“only, just”).

Topics