Verbally

Part of speech: adverb

Definitions

1. Expressed through spoken words or speech rather than in writing or action
2. Using spoken language or oral communication to convey information, thoughts, or feelings
3. Conveyed through the use of spoken language as opposed to written text or gestures

Etymology: "Verbally" is about as plain as English etymology gets: it is the adjective "verbal" with the adverbial ending "-ly" attached. The adjective "verbal" comes from the Latin "verbalis," meaning "of a word," from "verbum," "word." The English suffix traces back much further, through Proto-Germanic "-līkaz," meaning "having the form or appearance of," which is the same root that gave us "like" and "-like" in words such as "godlike." That suffix took a long road to English. Its ancestors passed through Old English "-līċe," the form used to turn adjectives into adverbs, and then into Middle English "-ly." Over centuries the "-ly" ending attached itself to countless adjectives, so "verbally" is one of many words built the same way, such as "quickly" or "happily." The sense has stayed remarkably close to its Latin source. "Verbal" has always pointed toward words, which is why the adverb means spoken rather than written or gestured, though readers should note that the Latin "verbum" itself covered both words and utterances.

Synonyms: orally, spoken, vocally, aloud, articulately

Antonyms: silently, nonverbally, unspoken, tacitly, implicitly