Hurtfully

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a way that inflicts pain or distress on others emotionally or physically
2. Through actions or speech that cause significant emotional or bodily harm
3. In a manner that causes emotional pain or physical injury to someone

Etymology: "Hurtfully" is a plain formation: the adjective "hurtful" with the adverbial suffix "-ly" added to turn it into a description of manner. "Hurtful" itself is built from "hurt" plus "-ful", meaning "full of" or "tending to," so a hurtful remark is one full of the capacity to wound. The suffix has a long ancestry. It descends from a Proto-Germanic form "-līkaz", which meant "having the body or form of", and it passed through Proto-West Germanic and Old English as "-līce", the adverbial ending of that era. In Middle English the ending wore down to "-ly", the form it keeps today. The same suffix sits behind countless other adverbs in English, so "hurtfully" simply adds one more manner-word to a very productive family.