shrewdly
/ˈʃɹuːdliː/adverb
shrewdly is spelled S-H-R-E-W-D-L-Y: 8 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,114th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, shrewdly means “In a shrewd manner” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in shrewdly?
| Letters | 8: S-H-R-E-W-D-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 5 million words; the 65,114th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is shrewdly?
Shrewdly appears about once in every 5 million words in written English, the 65,114th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce shrewdly?
- /ˈʃɹuːdliː/
Shrewdly has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Forms of shrewdly
- more shrewdly comparative
- most shrewdly superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does shrewdly mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adverb
- 1
In a shrewd manner.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Shrewdly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense in a shrewd manner:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | astucieusement, avec perspicacité |
| German | geschickt |
| Portuguese | astutamente |
| Spanish | astutamente, con perspicacia |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does shrewdly come from?
Inherited from Middle English schrewedly (“wickedly, harshly”). By surface analysis, shrewd + -ly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).