# hardly

> English word · Adverb · IPA /ˈhɑːdli/ · frequency rank #2,834

## Definitions
1. Barely, only just, almost not.
2. Certainly not; not at all.
3. With difficulty.
4. Harshly, severely; in a hard manner.
5. Firmly, vigorously, with strength or exertion.

## Etymology
From Middle English hardely, hardliche, from Old English heardlīċe (“boldly; hardily; without ease; in a way that causes pain; not easily; only by degrees”), equivalent to hard + -ly. Compare Dutch hardelijk, German härtlich.

## Easily confused with
- **harry** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-harry)
- **hardy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-hardy)
- **Harvey** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-harvey)
- **Harold** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-harold)
- **Harley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-harley)
- **hurdle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-hurdle)
- **Hartley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-hartley)
- **harshly** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardly-vs-harshly)
- **hard** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hard-vs-hardly)
- **handy** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/handy-vs-hardly)
- **handle** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/handle-vs-hardly)
- **harder** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/harder-vs-hardly)
- **harden** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/harden-vs-hardly)
- **Hadley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hadley-vs-hardly)
- **Hardin** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardin-vs-hardly)
- **Hardie** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/hardie-vs-hardly)
- **handily** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/handily-vs-hardly)
- **Handley** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/handley-vs-hardly)

## Common misspellings (10)
`ahrdly`, `hadrly`, `harddly`, `hardlly`, `hardlyy`, `hardyl`, `harldy`, `harrdly`, `hhardly`, `hradly`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/hardly