barely

[ bair-lee ]
/ ˈbɛər li /

adverb

only just; scarcely; no more than; almost not: He had barely enough money to pay for the car.
without disguise or concealment; openly: They gave the facts to him barely.
scantily; meagerly; sparsely.
Archaic. merely.

Origin of barely

before 950; Middle English; Old English bærlīce. See bare1, -ly

usage note for barely

1. See hardly.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH barely

barely hardly scarcely (see synonym study at hardly)

Example sentences from the Web for barely

British Dictionary definitions for barely

barely
/ (ˈbɛəlɪ) /

adverb

only just; scarcely barely enough for their needs
informal not quite; nearly barely old enough
scantily; poorly barely furnished
archaic openly

undefined barely

See hardly