Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

swimmingly

/ˈswɪmɪŋli/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.35 in modern English

Syllables: swim-ming-ly
IPA: /ˈswɪmɪŋli/

21

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

3

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

adv

With a gliding motion suggesting swimming.

adv

In a very favorable manner; without difficulty; agreeably, successfully.

Informal

Example Sentences

"Bear your Hips ſwimmingly, tholl loll, loll, / Keep your Eyes languiſhing, tholl loll, loll, […]"
"By the angels who tear forth the ſouls of ſome with violence; and by thoſe who draw forth the ſouls of others with gentleneſs; by thoſe who glide ſwimmingly through the air with the commands of God; […]: on a certain day, the diſturbing blaſt of the trumpet ſhall diſturb the univerſe; and the ſubſequent blaſt ſhall follow it."
"The memorable exploit of the noble Secretary in rescuing his friend's dog from merciless winds and waters, deserves to be recorded in letters of gold— […] [W]hen, shortly afterwards, he jumped into the water for this heroic purpose, it was said, that a person who went on so swimmingly, could never get Down, even in the water."
"After drawing a correct outline, wash a little "indigo" or "ultramarine" faintly and swimmingly upon the forehead, between the eyes and corners of the mouth;— […]"
"[…] I'faith; how ſwimmingly would this pretty little / Ambling Filly carry a man of my body!"
"The secretary would not go so far to satisfy the whigs in the house of commons; but there all went swimmingly."

Etymology

From swimming (“(adj.) moving in water as an ordinary means of motion; without difficulty”) + -ly (suffix forming adverbs from adjectives).

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈswɪmɪŋli/
British English: /ˈswɪmɪŋli/

Usage

Informal

Inflected Forms

more swimmingly (comparative) most swimmingly (superlative)

Synonyms

like clockwork smoothly without a hitch

Questions

How do you pronounce swimmingly?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈswɪmɪŋli/.
What does swimmingly mean?: With a gliding motion suggesting swimming.
Where does swimmingly come from?: From swimming (“(adj.) moving in water as an ordinary means of motion; without difficulty”) + -ly (suffix forming adverbs from adjectives).

How to pronounce swimmingly

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