ENGLISH
REFERENCE

fairly

adv. degree
B1 Intermediate Oxford US //ˈfɛɹɫi// UK //fˈeəli// fair·ly Archaic General-service

adv. to a degree that is more than a little, but not extremely. You use it when something is good or enough, but not perfect.

adv. to a moderate or reasonable degree; somewhat. Often used to qualify adjectives or other adverbs without reaching the intensity of 'very'.


SIMPLE

The exam was fairly difficult, but I passed.

CONTEXTUAL

The hotel was fairly clean and close to the station, making it a good choice for a short stay.

COMPLEX

While the initial results were fairly promising, the research team cautioned that a larger sample size would be necessary to confirm their hypothesis.

Synonyms
Antonyms
Origin

From Middle English fayrly, fayrely, vayrliche, equivalent to fair + -ly.

Usage

Typically placed before the adjective or adverb it modifies. Unlike 'quite', it rarely carries the meaning of 'completely'.

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