Convulsively

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Acting with rapid, irregular shaking or trembling due to sudden muscular contractions
2. Performing an action characterized by abrupt and uncontrollable muscle movements
3. Done with quick, jerky motions caused by involuntary contractions in the body

Etymology: Convulsively is a plain formation: the adjective "convulsive" with the suffix "-ly" added to turn it into an adverb meaning "in a convulsive manner." The adjective is built on "convulsion," which came into English from Latin "convulsio," a noun from "convellere," meaning "to pull violently apart" or "to wrench," from "com-" (together, intensively) and "vellere" (to pull). The suffix has a longer ancestry than the word it sits on. "-ly" descends from Old English "-līċe," which was itself a form of the Old English word "līc," meaning "body" or "form." So an adverb like convulsively is, at its deepest level, a phrase meaning "in the body-form of a convulsion," which is a neat reminder that English adverbs were once built from nouns about shape and appearance.

Synonyms: spasmodically, jerkily, tremulously

Antonyms: calmly, steadily, smoothly