briefly
- 01 B1 Intermediate
for a very short period of time.
lasting for a short duration; used to describe events or states that do not persist.
Simple“We stopped briefly in Paris on our way to the south of France.”
In context“The lights flickered briefly during the storm, but the backup generator kicked in before the building lost power entirely.”
SynonymsAntonymspermanentlylong term - 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
using only a few words to explain something.
in a concise or summary manner; expressing the main points without unnecessary detail.
Simple“The manager spoke briefly about the new rules before the shift started.”
In context“The report outlines the findings briefly, focusing on the primary causes of the equipment failure rather than the minor technical details.”
SynonymsAntonymslengthilywordily - 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
you use this to introduce a short summary of what you are about to say.
used as a sentence adverb to introduce a concise summary or conclusion.
Simple“Briefly, the plan is to sell the house and move to the coast.”
In context“Briefly, the proposed legislation aims to reduce carbon emissions by incentivising the transition to renewable energy sources across the industrial sector.”
Synonymsin shortto sum up
Usage briefly describe · briefly discuss · briefly examine
“Across the room, her husband, Ba Demba Ceesay, speaks only briefly.”
“Day briefly turned to night in Spain yesterday, as the country witnessed its first total solar eclipse in more than a century.”
From Middle English breefly, breffly, brevely, brevelike, breveliche, equivalent to brief + -ly.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.