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What does the adverb hardly mean? There are 12 meanings listed in OED's entry for the adverb hardly , four of which are labelled obsolete. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definitions, usage, and quotation evidence.
Hardly is an adverb meaning ‘almost not’: I hardly ever go to concerts. I can hardly wait for my birthday. It cannot be used instead of hard: I’ve been working hardly today. She has thought very hardly about her future plans. It was raining hardly outside.
adverb. hard· ly ˈhärd-lē. Synonyms of hardly. 1. a. used to emphasize a minimal amount or degree. I hardly knew her. [=I didn't know her well at all.] It's almost new—there's hardly a scratch [=there are almost no scratches] on it. There's been hardly any [=almost no] news. There's hardly any [=almost none] left.
Hardly ever, rarely, scarcely and seldom are frequency adverbs. We can use them to refer to things that almost never happen, or do not happen very often. They have a negative meaning.
Hardly is an adverb. Hardly has a negative meaning. It normally means ‘almost not at all’ or ‘only just’. We can use it in mid position, or before an adjective or a noun: He wore a big hat that covered his head and you could hardly see his face. (you could only see a small part of his face)
hardly. (hɑːʳdli ) 1. adverb [ADVERB before verb] B1+. You use hardly to modify a statement when you want to emphasize that it is only a small amount or detail which makes it true, and that therefore it is best to consider the opposite statement as being true. [emphasis] I hardly know you. Nick, on the sofa, hardly slept.
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The adverb hardly means barely or scarcely at all. If you hardly ever visit your cousins in California, it means you almost never travel to see them.
