soundly
/ˈsaʊnd.lɪ/adverb
soundly is spelled S-O-U-N-D-L-Y: 7 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,017th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, soundly means “In a thorough manner; in manner free of defect or deficiency” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in soundly?
| Letters | 7: S-O-U-N-D-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,017th 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 soundly?
Soundly appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,017th 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 soundly?
- US /ˈsaʊnd.lɪ/
Soundly 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). Recordings: En-us-soundly.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of soundly
- more soundly comparative
- most soundly superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does soundly mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adverb
- 1
In a thorough manner; in manner free of defect or deficiency.
He was soundly thrashed by the semi-professional boxer.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Soundly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense in a thorough manner:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | fortement, solidement |
| German | gründlich, ordentlich |
| Spanish | profundo |
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 soundly come from?
From Middle English soundly, soundely, from Old English ġesundlīċe (“safely, prosperously, gladly”), equivalent to sound + -ly. Originally meaning "safely", the present sense came in the 16ᵗʰ century.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).