surely

[ shoo r-lee, shur- ]
/ ˈʃʊər li, ˈʃɜr- /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR surely ON THESAURUS.COM

adverb

firmly; unerringly; without missing, slipping, etc.
undoubtedly, assuredly, or certainly: The results are surely encouraging.
(in emphatic utterances that are not necessarily sustained by fact) assuredly: Surely you are mistaken.
inevitably or without fail: Slowly but surely the end approached.
yes, indeed: Surely, I'll go with you!

Origin of surely

First recorded in 1300–50, surely is from the Middle English word surliche. See sure, -ly

usage note for surely

2. See sure.

Words nearby surely

sure-fire, sure-footed, sure-handed, surefire, surefooted, surely, surety, suretyship, surf, surf 'n' turf, surf and turf

Words related to surely

inevitably, certainly, assuredly, plainly, absolutely, indeed, unquestionably, evidently, definitely, undoubtedly, clearly, inexorably, decidedly, distinctly, indubitably, positively, conclusively, doubtlessly, admittedly, explicitly

Example sentences from the Web for surely

British Dictionary definitions for surely

surely
/ (ˈʃʊəlɪ, ˈʃɔː-) /

adverb

without doubt; assuredly things could surely not have been worse
without fail; inexorably (esp in the phrase slowly but surely)
(sentence modifier) am I not right in thinking that?; I am sure that surely you don't mean it?
rare in a sure manner
archaic safely; securely
(sentence substitute) mainly US and Canadian willingly; of course; yes