thinly C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˈθɪnli/ UK /ˈθɪnli/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 adv in a thin layer or sparse manner Slice the garlic thinly before adding it to the oil. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adv · in a thin layer or sparse... sparselyscantilylightlysparingly ↔ Opposites thicklydenselyheavily Word family Related forms thinthinnessthinning Etymology AI details From thin (Old English thynne) + the adverbial suffix -ly, from Proto-Germanic *thunnuz. thynne Old English *thunnuz Proto-Germanic View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # thinly **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** adv **IPA (US):** /ˈθɪnli/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈθɪnli/ ## Meanings 1. in a thin layer or sparse manner ## Examples - Slice the garlic thinly before adding it to the oil. ## Synonyms - sparsely - scantily - lightly - sparingly ## Antonyms - thickly - densely - heavily ## Related Forms - thin - thinness - thinning ## Roots and Affixes - Root: thynne - Root: *thunnuz ## Etymology From thin (Old English thynne) + the adverbial suffix -ly, from Proto-Germanic *thunnuz. ## AI Etymology Thinly comes from thin (Old English thynne) + the adverbial suffix -ly, from Proto-Germanic *thunnuz. The historical chain includes Old English thynne and Proto-Germanic *thunnuz. The formation is best read as suffixal, compound, and borrowed: the word thinly carries its older form-history into a compact English lexical shape. In present English it is used as a adv, "in a thin layer or sparse manner". Related English forms include thin, thinness, and thinning. The result is a adv whose etymology preserves both the older form and the later English specialization. ## Topics - Describing Qualities - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown