Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

idly

/ˈaɪd(ə)lɪ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.93 in modern English

Syllables: idly
IPA: /ˈaɪd(ə)lɪ/

8

Scrabble Score

4

Letters

2

Syllables

4

Unique Chars

Meaning

adv

Without specific purpose, intent or effort.

adv

In an idle manner.

noun

Alternative spelling of idli.

Example Sentences

"I idly played with the paper, not even realizing I was folding it into a paper airplane."
"A Tamil breakfast starts with idly (steamed rice cakes) with sambhar (hot, spicy and sour lentils with vegetables) and rasams (broth of lentil, spiced) and upma (cooked course wheat), lunch is generally dosai (thin crepes), vadas (deep fried nuggets of lentils) with sambhar."

Etymology

From Middle English idely, ydelly, idelliche, from Old English īdellīċe, equivalent to idle + -ly.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: idely, īdellīċe, இட்லி, ಇಡ್ಲಿ
Suffix: idle

Inflected Forms

more idly (comparative) most idly (superlative) idlely (alternative, obsolete) idlily (alternative, rare) idlies (plural)

Phrases

sit idly by

Synonyms

lazily

Rhymes With

widely

Questions

How do you pronounce idly?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈaɪd(ə)lɪ/.
What does idly mean?: Without specific purpose, intent or effort.
Where does idly come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce idly

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “idly”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˈaɪd(ə)lɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “idly”.
Repeat and practice — Say “idly” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.