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likely

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Likely

English

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈlaɪkli/
  • Audio (US):(file)
  • Rhymes: -aɪkli
  • Hyphenation: like‧ly

Etymology 1

From Middle English likely, likly, lykly, likliche, from Old English ġelīclīċ (“suitable”) and Old Norse líkligr (“likely”) (probably independent formations), equivalent to like +‎ -ly (adjectival suffix).

Adjective

likely (comparative more likely or (rare) likelier, superlative most likely or (rare) likeliest)

  1. Probable; having a greater-than-even chance of occurring.
    Rain is likely later this afternoon.
    • 2009 May 24, Laura Miller, “Faking It”, in The New York Times‎, archived from the original on 28 September 2021:
      His parents — a restless, titanically self-involved father and a mother who cultivated her inner life in strict solitude — seem a much likelier source for his condition.
    • 2011 January 29, Ian Hughes, “Southampton 1 - 2 Man Utd”, in BBC‎:
      Still, Saints looked the likeliest to make the breakthrough, and it came when Jonny Evans could only half-clear a long ball and Chaplow took full advantage.
  2. (as predicate, followed by to and infinitive) Reasonably to be expected; apparently destined, probable.
    Do you think there's likely to be snow?
    He is likely to succeed at anything he tries.
    • 2011 November 3, Chris Bevan, “Rubin Kazan 1 - 0 Tottenham”, in BBC Sport‎:
      In truth, Tottenham never really looked like taking all three points and this defeat means they face a battle to reach the knockout stages - with their next home game against PAOK Salonika on 30 November likely to prove decisive.
    • 2013 April 9, Andrei Lankov, “Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff.”, in The New York Times‎, archived from the original on 21 May 2020:
      People who talk about an imminent possibility of war seldom pose this question: What would North Korea’s leadership get from unleashing a war that they are likely to lose in weeks, if not days?
    • 2023 June 15, Rebecca Wallwork, “‘You had to be there’: Foods that taste better on home turf”, in CNN‎:
      As Trevor Corson, author of “The Story of Sushi” explains, in Japan, sushi is typically eaten at a bar, where it’s customary for the customer to chat with the chef, who can recommend what’s in season. The short window during which the fish is fresh also makes it more likely to be tastier in Japan.
  3. Appropriate, suitable; believable; promising, having a good potential.
    Jones is a likely candidate for management.
    The relationship with social status is a likely topic for investigation.
  4. Plausible; within the realm of credibility.
    not a very likely excuse.
    • 2011 December 19, Kerry Brown, “Kim Jong-il obituary”, in The Guardian‎:
      The DPRK propagated an extraordinary tale of his birth occurring on Mount Baekdu, one of Korea's most revered sites, being accompanied by shooting stars in the sky. It is more likely that he was born in a small village in the USSR, while his father was serving as a Soviet-backed general during the second world war.
  5. Leading with high probability to some specified outcome.
    a likely recipe for disaster.
  6. (archaic) Attractive; pleasant.
    I found a likely spot under a shady tree for the picnic.
  7. (obsolete) Similar; like; alike.
    • 1596, Edmund Spenser, An Hymne in Honour of Beautie:
      For love is a celestiall harmonie Of likely harts composed of starres concent
Synonyms
  • (as predicate, followed by "to" and infinitive): liable
Derived terms
Translations
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Noun

likely (plural likelies)

  1. Something or somebody considered likely.

Etymology 2

From Middle English likely, likly, lykly, likliche, from Old English ġelīclīċe (“equally”) and Old Norse líkliga, glíkliga (“likely”), both from Proto-Germanic *līkalīka, equivalent to like +‎ -ly (adverbial suffix).

Adverb

likely (comparative more likely or (rare) likelier, superlative most likely or (rare) likeliest) (US)

  1. Probably.
    Synonym: see synonyms at probably
    Likely he’ll win the election in this economy.   =   He’ll likely win the election in this economy.   =   He likely will win the election in this economy.
    Most likely he’ll win the election in this economy.   =   He’ll most likely win the election in this economy.   =   He most likely will win the election in this economy.
    • 2018 February, Robert Draper, “They are Watching You—and Everything Else on the Planet: Technology and Our Increasing Demand for Security have Put Us All under Surveillance. Is Privacy Becoming just a Memory?”, in National Geographic‎, Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Society, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 14 June 2018:
      Dismounting on the sidewalk, their helmets still on, they fall into a lengthy conversation. Their dialogue is known only to them. But there is something the men themselves likely don’t know: About a mile away, from a windowless room, two other men are watching them.
  2. (obsolete) Similarly.
Usage notes
  • The adverb is more common in US English than in British English.
  • As an adverb, likely is often preceded by a modifier such as most or quite.
Translations

Anagrams

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