Kenly

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a keen, sharp or eager manner, especially when acting quickly, boldly or with great energy
2. Acting with sharpness, eagerness or boldness, in the way that a quick and alert person would
3. Describing an action done in a bold, vigorous and alert fashion, archaically in a sharp and eager way

Etymology: Kenly means "boldly" or "keenly," and it is an old English word with a clear ancestry. It comes from Old English "cenlice," formed from "cene" (bold, brave, keen) and the adverbial suffix "-lice" (in the manner of), the same suffix that gives modern "-ly." Its adjective counterpart "kene," which survives in modern English as "keen," shares that root, so the two words are close relatives. The adjective "kene" originally carried the sense of bold, brave, or fierce, and only later narrowed toward sharpness and eagerness. Its adverb "kenly" followed the same path, so it once described acting with daring rather than with precision. The modern English "keen" has largely displaced both, which is why "kenly" now sounds archaic and mainly appears in older literature and dialect.