barely

Meaning

1. (not-comparable) By a small margin..
2. (not-comparable) Almost not at all.
3. (not-comparable) Recently, just now.
4. (archaic, not-comparable) Merely.
5. (comparable, rare) Openly, clearly, plainly.

Synonyms

hardly

scarcely

just

with difficulty

only just

narrowly

just barely

almost

slightly

scarce

by inches

scantily

only

nearly

merely

weakly

by a hair’s breadth

by a whisker

as soon as

penuriously

practically

rarely

seldom

shamefacedly

slowly

small

snugly

somehow

step by step

unassumingly

unpretentiously

with effort

by small degrees

not quite

scraping by

by a nose

about

by a nose length

about to

at last

at length

austerely

by a hair

edgewise

eventually

exactly

finally

gradually

inadequately

lastly

Translations

kaum

appena

apenas

à peine

μόλις

nauwelijks

knapp

mit Mühe

vix

apenas

nur schwer

amper

mühsam

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈbɛə(ɹ).li/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: barely

Cognate with Danish: bare

Cognate with Norwegian: bare

In summary

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

Sentences

Price only barely managed to secure Davis's permission to return to Missouri-minus his troops .

His nickname of Tich alluded to his height of barely five feet .