LIGHTLY

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does lightly mean? 

• LIGHTLY (adverb)
  The adverb LIGHTLY has 7 senses:

1. without good reason

2. with few burdens

3. with little weight or force

4. indulging with temperance

5. with indifference or without dejection

6. in a small quantity or extent

7. to a slight degree

  Familiarity information: LIGHTLY used as an adverb is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• LIGHTLY (adverb)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Without good reason

Context example:

one cannot say such things lightly

Pertainym:

light (psychologically light; especially free from sadness or troubles)

Sense 2

Meaning:

With few burdens

Synonyms:

light; lightly

Context example:

experienced travellers travel light

Pertainym:

light (of comparatively little physical weight or density)

Sense 3

Meaning:

With little weight or force

Synonyms:

gently; lightly; softly

Context example:

she kissed him lightly on the forehead

Sense 4

Meaning:

Indulging with temperance

Context example:

we eat lightly in the morning

Antonym:

heavily (indulging excessively)

Pertainym:

light (marked by temperance in indulgence)

Sense 5

Meaning:

With indifference or without dejection

Context example:

he took it lightly

Pertainym:

light (psychologically light; especially free from sadness or troubles)

Sense 6

Meaning:

In a small quantity or extent

Synonyms:

lightly; thinly

Context example:

apply paint lightly

Sense 7

Meaning:

To a slight degree

Context example:

her speech is only lightly accented

Pertainym:

light (not great in degree or quantity or number)

 Context examples 

She leaned lightly against his shoulder, but she leaned, and she continued to lean when he shifted his position to make it more comfortable for her.

(Martin Eden, by Jack London)

I had forgotten the existence of Maud Brewster, and I remembered her with a start as she stepped lightly beside me.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

It ran lightly on the surface of the snow, while the dogs ploughed through by main strength.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

The snow is falling lightly and there is a strange excitement in the air.

(Dracula, by Bram Stoker)

Such a spectacle was new to Hordle John or to Alleyne Edricson; but the archer treated it lightly, as a common matter enough.

(The White Company, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

I did him lightly in the matter of exercise.

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

It was impossible to say to that sweet little surprised face, otherwise than lightly and playfully, that we must work to live.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

"We're surprised, too," she answered lightly. "We never saw Wolf make up to a stranger before."

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

St. John was not a man to be lightly refused: you felt that every impression made on him, either for pain or pleasure, was deep-graved and permanent.

(Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Brontë)

When he dragged the result of his day's hunt into the cave, the she-wolf inspected it, turned her muzzle to him, and lightly licked him on the neck.

(White Fang, by Jack London)