Chaffingly

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a manner that shows playful teasing or light mockery
2. Expressed with a tone suggesting gentle or humorous ridicule
3. Done in a way that involves joking or bantering to provoke or amuse

Etymology: "Chaffingly" is simply "chaffing" with the adverbial ending "-ly" added to it. "Chaffing" is the present participle of "chaff", used in its older sense of teasing, banter, or good-natured mockery, so the adverb describes doing something in that manner. The ending "-ly" comes from Old English "-lic", which turned adjectives into adverbs and was the regular way English built manner words from a base like this one. The verb "chaff" in this sense is an older use than the grain-husk meaning most people know. It rests on the idea of light, meaningless talk, the way the chaff of a harvest is blown away while the grain is kept. A person who chaffs someone is teasing them lightly without real malice, so "chaffingly" describes a tone of playful ridicule rather than cruelty.