Instrumentally

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a manner that concerns the use of devices or methodologies
2. In a way that involves using a tool or device to achieve a result ; as a crucial contributor or cause in bringing about an outcome
3. Through the application of instruments or mechanisms ; serving as an important agent responsible for an effect

Etymology: "Instrumentally" is an adverb built from the adjective "instrumental" plus the suffix "-ly", and the suffix has a longer ancestry than the base word. The "-ly" ending descends from an Old English form, "-līce", which was itself a derivative of an older Germanic element meaning "body" or "form" (its ultimate root is related to the word "like"). Over centuries it shortened to the modern "-ly" and became the default way to turn adjectives into adverbs in English. The base word, "instrumental", is the older half of the story. It came into English from Latin "instrumentum", meaning a tool or implement, which in turn comes from "instruere", to equip or arrange. So "instrumentally" literally describes doing something in the manner of a tool or implement being used. The adverb is a plain grammatical formation rather than a coinage with a famous author, and its meaning has stayed close to its literal sense of acting through a tool or means.