FromMiddle Englishschyrly, equivalent tosheer +-ly.
sheerly (comparativemoresheerly,superlativemostsheerly)
- Absolutely;purely;quite.
1988 October 21, George Grass, “WagnerVision”, inChicago Reader[1]:On asheerly technical plane, the projections used for the backgrounds were very effective, particularly in the third act, where a sunset faded most convincingly.
- At a verysteep angle;precipitously.
1898,H.G. Wells,The War of the Worlds, London: William Heinemann, page238:The pit droppedsheerly from my feet, but a little way along, the rubbish afforded a practicable slope to the summit of the ruins.
- (obsolete)At once.
