feeblyadv.
/ˈfiːbli/, U.S. /ˈfibli/ In a feeble manner.† 1. In a sorry manner or plight; inefficiently, insufficiently, niggardly, poorly, scantily. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > retaining > niggardliness or meanness > [adverb]
narrowlya1250
feeblyc1290
scarcely1340
straitly1340
strait1390
niggardly?1529
nighly1548
pinchingly1561
close-fisted1575
hard1580
niggishly1580
nearly1591
mincingly1593
costively1598
penuriously1616
neara1625
scantingly1627
parsimoniouslya1634
scrapingly1680
stingily1682
scrimply1690
sneakingly1695
churlishly1875
curmudgeonly1879
skinflintily1899
mingily1958
the world > relative properties > quantity > insufficiency > [adverb] > scantily or meagrely
feeblyc1290
scarcely1340
scantc1440
scantly1509
daintilya1513
barelya1535
thinly1537
leanly1580
meagrelya1586
starvedly1606
exile1654
scantily1774
skimpingly1853
skimpily1859
stintedly1863
barrenly1877
c1290 S. Eng. Leg., Edmund Conf. 112 Ake febleliche hire spedde, For seint Eadmund hadde ane smate ȝeorde.
1297 R. Gloucester's Chron. (Rolls) 6125 Febleliche he liuede al is lif & deyde in feble deþe.
c1300 Havelok (Laud) (1868) 418 Feblelike he gaf hem cloþes.
c1300 Beket 1178 Such a man..So febliche wende over lond.
a1450 Knt. de la Tour (1868) 30 Y holde hym that dothe it but febly conseled.
1570 R. Henryson tr. Æsop Morall Fabillis (Charteris) sig. B Ane sober wane Of fog and fairn full febillie wes maid.
2. In a weak, ineffective, or half-hearted manner, without strength, energy, or force; weakly. Of sight: Dimly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > manner of action > lack of violence, severity, or intensity > [adverb] > without force or vigour
slacklyc960
feeblyc1330
remissly?a1425
faintlyc1440
weakly1526
punily1555
forcelessly1611
unvigorously1641
feeble1834
validless1866
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > types of vision > [adverb] > dim
feebly1856
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 3050 Febli þou canst hayte.
a1340 R. Rolle Psalter cxlv. 1 I may noght stand now bot febilly.
c1400 Lanfranc's Cirurg. 67 Þe pouse began to appere febiliche.
1483 Cath. Angl. 124/2 Febylly, debeliter, imbecilliter.
1533 T. More Debellacyon Salem & Bizance i. xiv. f. ciiii He hath..defended,..his boke..wyth myche worke full febly.
1548 Hall's Vnion: Henry VI f. clxxvij He was fayntly receyued, & febly welcomed.
1591 E. Spenser Ruines of Rome in Complaints 221 Ye see huge flames..Efsoones consum'd to fall downe feebily.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Coriolanus (1623) ii. ii. 83 The deeds of Coriolanus Should not be vtter'd feebly . View more context for this quotation
1682 J. Dryden Mac Flecknoe 13 Thy Gentle Numbers feebly creep.
1757 S. Foote Author ii. 30 Which were as feebly resisted.
1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. I. xix. 232 I..see feebly in prospect my recovery.
1875 B. Jowett in tr. Plato Dialogues (ed. 2) IV. 275 In dreaming we feebly recollect.
3. In a small degree, slightly, poorly.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > smallness of quantity, amount, or degree > [adverb] > to a small extent or slightly
lightlyeOE
liteOE
littleOE
a litec1290
smallc1300
softc1390
smally?a1425
slenderlya1513
hoverly1549
remissly1557
slender1581
not half1583
faintly1590
slightly1594
lankly1611
lowly1655
slight1671
nicely1698
weakly1775
sparingly1796
jimply1816
feebly1830
slightually1859
marginally1960
1830 C. Lyell Princ. Geol. I. 133 Others feebly represented in our own country.
1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 698 The acids act but feebly upon caoutchouc.
Compounds
feebly-toiling adj.
ΚΠ
1845 C. Norton Child of Islands 179 The feebly-toiling heart that shrinks appalled.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1895; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
<
adv.c1290