chiefly

1. (mostly or mainly) mostly or mainly; you use this to point out the most important part of a group or reason.

Definition

adv. mostly or mainly; you use this to point out the most important part of a group or reason.

adv. principally or primarily; used to identify the most significant element or cause in a given context.

simple

“The team is chiefly made up of students.”

contextual

“The report focuses chiefly on the economic impact of the new policy.”

complex

“The region's economy is chiefly dependent on tourism, though small-scale agriculture provides a vital safety net during off-season months.”

Usually placed before the phrase it modifies or after the verb 'to be'.

This is a more formal alternative to 'mainly'. In casual conversation, most speakers prefer 'mostly' or 'mainly'.

From Middle English chefly; equivalent to chief + -ly (adverbial suffix).

From chief + -ly (adjectival suffix). Piecewise doublet of chefly and headly.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

NOUN

ADVERB

chiefly(B2)