Meanly

Part of speech: adverb

Pronunciation: /ˈmiːnli/

Definitions

1. In a cruel, unkind, or stingy manner; with lack of generosity or compassion toward others
2. In a manner that demonstrates unkindness or a lack of generosity, often reflecting bitterness or malice toward others
3. Showing unwillingness to give or share and acting with meanness toward others ; behaving with ill will or harshness, often to hurt or upset someone

Etymology: "Meanly" is an inflected-looking form of "mean" that is really a straightforward adverb built from an adjective plus a suffix. The adjective "mean" once carried the sense of "common" or "lowly" before it came to mean "unkind" or "stingy," and the adverb followed that shift. Middle English had "meneli" and "meneliche," formed by adding the suffix "-ly" (from "-lic," meaning "like" or "in the manner of") to "mean." So "meanly" originally described acting in a way befitting a person of low rank, and only later took on the sense of acting cruelly or shabbily. The notion of low rank contains the seed of the modern meaning: a person of humble station was often judged to be ungenerous or unkind, which is how the adjective drifted toward moral disapproval. Today "meanly" most often describes behavior that is cruel or spiteful, though it also covers stinginess, as in "meanly refusing to share."

Synonyms: stingily, miserly, cheaply, parsimoniously

Antonyms: generously, magnificently, lavishly