Canonically

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a manner consistent with officially accepted texts or principles within a specific field
2. In a fashion that conforms to established rules or recognized texts within a particular discipline or context
3. In a way that follows recognized guidelines or conventions ; with respect to texts or traditions that are officially accepted

Etymology: "Canonically" is a straightforward formation: the adjective "canonical" with the suffix "-ly" added to make it an adverb. The adjective itself comes from Latin "canonicus", which goes back to Greek "kanōn", a measuring rod or rule, and it originally described things conforming to church law or a recognized list of authoritative texts. The adverb then carries that sense into any field where something is judged by its accepted rules. The suffix has a longer lineage than the word it sits on. "-ly" descends from Old English "-līċe", which was itself built on "līc", meaning body or form, so "-ly" began as a way of saying "in the shape of" something. Over centuries that sense faded into the plain adverbial marker it is today, and it now attaches to almost any adjective in English.

Synonyms: authoritatively, officially, traditionally, legally, orthodoxly

Antonyms: unofficially, irregularly, anarchically, notoriously, heretically