FromMiddle Englishhiȝly,heȝly,heyȝliche, fromOld Englishhēalīce(“highly”), equivalent tohigh +-ly. Cognate withDutchhoogelijk(“highly”),Germanhöchlich(“highly”),Danishhøjlig(“highly”),Swedishhögligen(“highly”).
highly (comparativehighlierormorehighly,superlativehighliestormosthighly)
- In ahigh oresteemed manner.
He spokehighly of you.
- Extremely;greatly; very much.
He is in ahighly visible job.
1952 March, R. K. Kirkland, “The Railways of Uxbridge”, inRailway Magazine, page150:There are those who value a seat sufficientlyhighly that they prefer to make their daily journeys by the Western Region Vine Street line.
2013 May-June,David Van Tassel,Lee DeHaan, “Wild Plants to the Rescue”, inAmerican Scientist, volume101, number 3:Plant breeding is always a numbers game.[…]The wild species we use are rich in genetic variation, and individual plants arehighly heterozygous and do not breed true. In addition, we are looking for rare alleles, so the more plants we try, the better.
- The adverbhighly and the adverbhigh should not be confused.
- This is certainlyhighly recommended.
- The stars were shininghigh above us.
collocations withhighly
(with verbs):
- praisehighly
- ratehighly
- valuehighly
- speakhighly (seespeak highly)
(with adjectives):
- highly disappointing
- highly paid
- highly encouraging
in a high or esteemed manner
extremely, greatly, awfully
Translations to be checked
