Rurally

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. In a fashion that pertains to non-urban environments, often highlighting agricultural life or natural landscapes
2. In a way that is connected to the countryside, emphasizing rural lifestyles and land use distinct from city living
3. In a manner that relates to the countryside, focusing on lifestyles, traditions, and environments that are not part of urban settings

Etymology: "Rurally" is a straightforward formation: the adjective "rural" with the suffix "-ly" added. "Rural" itself comes from Latin "ruralis," meaning "of the country," from "rus," "countryside," which travelled into English through French. The suffix has a longer ancestry, traceable back through Proto-Germanic "-līkaz," a form meaning "having the form or appearance of," which is also the source of the English adjective ending "-like." Over the centuries that element shrank to the simple "-ly" we use now, so the same ending that turns "rural" into "rurally" also appears in words like "friendly" and "lovely." The adverb therefore simply describes doing something in the manner of the countryside. Its sense follows directly from the adjective: a rurally focused lifestyle is one shaped by the characteristics of rural life.

Synonyms: countrified, rustically

Antonyms: urbanely