monthly
- 01 B1 Intermediate
a magazine that comes out once every month.
a periodical publication issued once a month.
Simple“She writes a regular column for a popular fashion monthly.”
In context“While many dailies are struggling, this high-end monthly has maintained a loyal readership through its long-form investigative journalism.”
Synonyms - 02 C1 Advanced
a polite or indirect way to talk about a woman's period.
a euphemistic reference to the menstrual cycle.
Simple“She was feeling quite tired because her monthly had just started.”
In context“In many traditional households, women used coded language like 'my monthly' to discuss their health without causing social discomfort.”
UsageUsually used with a possessive pronoun like 'her' or 'my'.
Teacher's tipThis is a euphemism; while common in older or more modest contexts, modern speakers often use the word 'period' directly.
Synonyms
“Second, we contacted the financial company where we owed our biggest monthly payment.”
“Track your spending weekly as well as monthly.”
From month + -ly (adjectival suffix), perhaps via Middle English monethly (attested only adverbially), from Old English mōnaþlīċ (“monthly”), from Proto-West Germanic mānōþlīk, from Proto-Germanic *mēnōþlīkaz (“monthly”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian moundelk (“monthly”), German monatlich (“monthly”), Danish månedlig (“monthly”), Swedish månatlig (“monthly”), Norwegian Bokmål månedlig (“monthly”), Icelandic mánaðarlegur (“monthly”).
From Middle English monethly, equivalent to month + -ly (adverbial suffix). Cognate with Saterland Frisian moundelk (“monthly”), Dutch maandelijks (“monthly”), German monatlich (“monthly”), Swedish månatligen (“monthly”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.