Word
earthly
Phoneticsearth·ly
US/ˈɝθɫi/
UK/ˈɜːθli/
Definitions
01worldly or physical
adj. relating to this world and physical life, rather than to heaven or spiritual things.
adj. pertaining to the terrestrial world or physical existence as opposed to a spiritual or celestial realm.
“The monk gave up all his earthly possessions to live a simple life.”
“The philosopher argued that we should focus on solving earthly problems before speculating about the nature of the afterlife.”
Synonyms
02for emphasis in negatives
adj. used to add strong emphasis to a question or negative statement, often meaning 'at all'.
adj. used as an intensifier in negative constructions or rhetorical questions to express disbelief or lack of knowledge.
“I have no earthly idea how he managed to finish the project so fast.”
“There is no earthly reason why the committee should reject a proposal that meets every single requirement.”
Informal
Usage
Almost exclusively used in negative phrases like 'no earthly reason' or 'no earthly idea'.
Teaching tip
This is a common idiomatic intensifier; tell students it functions similarly to 'on earth' in 'Why on earth did you do that?'
Synonyms
03a slight chance
n. the smallest possible chance of succeeding or understanding something.
n. the slightest chance of success or the most basic level of understanding; typically used in the negative.
“With so little time left, the team didn't have an earthly of winning.”
“The candidate didn't stand an earthly of securing the nomination given the current political climate.”
British English · Informal
Usage
Usually appears in the construction 'not to have/stand an earthly'.
Teaching tip
This is a very specific British idiom where 'earthly' functions as a noun by dropping the word 'chance'.
Etymology
From Middle English erthely, erthlich, ierðlich, from Old English eorþlīċ, corresponding to earth + -ly. Cognate with Old Norse jarðligr (“earthly”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.