Adequately

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a manner that is sufficient or acceptable for a particular purpose, though not necessarily excellent
2. In a way that meets the necessary requirements or standards for a specific situation, without implying superiority
3. Performed to a level that is satisfactory and meets the essential criteria, though may lack distinction

Etymology: "Adequately" is built from "adequate" plus the suffix "-ly," and the adjective itself traces back to Latin "adaequatus," the past participle of "adaequare," meaning "to make equal to." The Latin verb combines "ad-," meaning "to," with "aequare," meaning "to make level or equal," itself from "aequus," meaning "level, equal, fair." So at its root, an adequate thing is one that has been made equal to a requirement. The English adjective "adequate" was borrowed from that Latin participle, and the suffix "-ly" comes from Old English "-līce," which turned adjectives into adverbs describing the manner of an action. Its ancestry runs back to a Proto-Germanic word meaning "body" or "form," which is why "-ly" once carried a sense of "in the shape of" before it became a simple marker of manner.

Synonyms: sufficiently, satisfactorily

Antonyms: insufficiently