Patriotically

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a way that demonstrates devotion to one's nation and its values
2. Conducted with an expression of allegiance and pride toward the homeland
3. In a way that expresses deep support and love for one's country

Etymology: "Patriotically" is a straightforward formation: the adjective "patriotic" with the adverbial ending "-ally" attached. That ending is the one that turns adjectives like "basically" or "tragically" into adverbs, and in this word it arrives by a long route. The "-al" element goes back through Latin "-ālis" and Old French, entering English in Middle English, while the "-ly" traces to Old English "-līċe," a word for "in the manner of" that was once a full adjective-forming element meaning "like" or "having the form of." The base, "patriotic," has a more concrete ancestry. It comes from Greek "patriōtēs," meaning "compatriot," itself built from "patrios," "of one's fathers," which rests on "patēr," "father." So a patriotic act is, at root, one done in the manner of one's fathers and the land they handed down. The adverb simply describes doing something in that spirit.