Humorlessly

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a fashion that conveys a stark absence of humor or light-heartedness
2. In a manner completely lacking any sense of humor or amusement
3. Doing something in a way that shows no enjoyment or playfulness

Etymology: "Humorlessly" is simply "humorless" with the adverbial ending "-ly" added, and the two parts have quite different histories. "Humor" came into English from Latin "umor", meaning moisture or bodily fluid, and in medieval physiology the four bodily fluids were thought to govern temperament. A person with the right balance of these "humors" had a well-regulated disposition, which is how the word drifted toward mood and eventually toward the sense of comic amusement. The "-less" in "humorless" is an old and productive suffix. It descends from Old English "lēas", meaning "free from" or "lacking", the same element that survives in words like "careless" and "endless". Attaching it to a noun creates an adjective meaning "without" that noun, so "humorless" describes someone or something lacking any sense of amusement. The adverb "humorlessly" follows the same pattern as countless other English adverbs. The suffix "-ly" comes from Old English "-līċe", an ending that turned adjectives into manner adverbs, so the word describes doing something in a way that lacks amusement.

Synonyms: seriously, solemnly, grimly

Antonyms: playfully, jokingly, lightheartedly