safelyadv.
/ˈseɪfli/, U.S. /ˈseɪfli/ 1.
a. Without harm or injury occasioned or received; so as to prevent damage or loss.Often with verbs of coming, going, and keeping: cf. safe adj. 3a.
ΚΠ
a1325 (c1280) Southern Passion (Pepys 2344) (1927) l. 1150 (MED) Leteþ, ȝif ȝe secheþ me, my disciples sauflich gon.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 4944 Lede þam sauueli [Gött. safly, Fairf. sauely] to þair land.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) (1996) i. l. 6523 Sauely [a1450 Lamb. sauelike] held þei castels & touns.
1418 in F. J. Furnivall Fifty Earliest Eng. Wills (1882) 44 And also that it be put in a bagge, & asselid, and safly kepid.
1449 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Feb. 1449 §22. m. 7 Whech felons, of thair robberies leven a certeyn somme of money with thair recetteurs or frendes, savely to be kept.
c1485 ( G. Hay Bk. Law of Armys (2005) 167 How suld thai be callit sauf condytis, bot gif thai condyte thair maisteris saufly and surely?
1489 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (Adv.) iii. 359 The queyn..sawffly come to the castell.
a1500 (a1450) Generides (Trin. Cambr.) l. 6456 Ye shall savely come and savely goo.
c1515 Ld. Berners tr. Bk. Duke Huon of Burdeux (1882–7) xxi. 58 They aryuyd sauely at the port of Jaffe.
1529 Will of Thomas Cromwell in R. B. Merriman Life & Lett. T. Cromwell (1902) I. 58 All the which parcelles of plate and houseold stuf I will shalbe savelye kept to thuse of my saide Soonne Gregorye.
1623 W. Shakespeare & J. Fletcher Henry VIII v. i. 70 God safely quit her of her Burthen.
1635 G. Hakewill Apologie (ed. 3) v–vi. 116 The earth being safely delivered from that inundation.
a1722 J. Lauder Jrnls. (1900) 3 It pleased God to bring us most safely to Paris.
1765 Bp. W. Warburton Lett. (1809) 365 I hope this will find you safely returned.
1853 C. M. Yonge Heir of Redclyffe II. xxi. 350 They were safely at home the same evening.
1859 A. H. Clough Corr. 9 June (1957) II. 569 Your article..came safely to hand.
1868 C. Thirlwall Lett. (1881) II. 169 I send the Contemporary Review by this post. Pray let me know that it has reached you safely.
1891 Law Times 90 461/2 She was in the train, lawfully.., and therefore a duty was cast upon the company of carrying her safely.
1941 I. L. Idriess Great Boomerang x. 75 Red Bill and his gang lifted their cattle. They headed south-west and got safely across to the Paroo.
2006 Field July 113/2 It may be wise to take a cool bag in the car to bear your purchases safely home.
b. In a manner free from danger or hazard, without risk; securely, protectively. Cf. safe adj. 3.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > safety > [adverb]
safelya1393
sounda1400
in safe?a1425
soundlyc1440
the world > action or operation > safety > [adverb] > without danger or risk
safelya1393
dangerless1596
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 3617 And thanne he may saufliche ynowh His Oxen yoke into the plowh.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) I. ii. iii. 64 Þey [sc. angels] haueth ribbes and sides, for þey haueþ safliche [L. tuta] in hemsilf alle þe ȝiftis of grace.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) l. 686 Be-tuix þe wolues lai þe schepe, Sauueli [Gött. saufli, Fairf. sauely] moght þai samen slepe.
tr. Palladius De re Rustica (Duke Humfrey) (1896) i. l. 483 (MED) Safly may thy whete in hit be lefte.
1655 R. Turner tr. H. C. Agrippa Fourth Bk. Occult Philos. 168 He did believe his swine were safely defended from the ravening of the wolves.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 121 Nor safely cou'd they shear the fleecy Store. View more context for this quotation
1751 S. Johnson Rambler No. 162. ⁋4 No man can safely do that by others, which might be done by himself.
1779 T. Forrest Voy. New Guinea 294 He took care to provide..reassortments of stock, which he safely deposited in his warehouse.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 205 He could not safely venture to outrage all his Protestant subjects at once.
1884 Manch. Examiner 29 May 4/7 The demand for advances will exceed..the sum which the State can safely or conveniently lend.
1901 B. Holmes Lect. (1905) VII. 83 We have our room-keys together with our tickets safely stored away in our pockets.
1941 E. Mittelholzer Corentyne Thunder xi. 56 As soon as the cows had been safely penned for the night, Ramgolall and his two daughters set out for Jannee's home.
2008 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 2 Dec. a21 (advt.) Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) technology aims to capture CO2 and store it safely underground.
2. † a. With confidence, assuredly. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > belief > belief, trust, confidence > [adverb]
trustlya1200
safelyc1330
traistlya1340
trustilya1375
traistilya1400
trustinglya1475
surely1523
trustfully?1531
confidently1597
affiantlya1641
fiduciarily1654
credently1832
confidingly1885
c1330 (?c1300) Amis & Amiloun (Auch.) (1937) l. 238 Ȝif euer..þou..of min help hast nede, Saueliche com or send þi sond.
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 191 (MED) R., for alle þe pres, sauely did þam vp ryue.
c1475 ( Surg. Treat. in MS Wellcome 564 f. 91 (MED) An vnkunnynge leche..bihiȝt sauely to helen þat child.
1549 J. Ponet tr. B. Ochino Tragoedie Unjuste Usurped Primacie sig. C.iii Say what ye will, and thinke with your selfe that ye may safely say your mind to me, for assuraunce wherof I promes you faithfully that I will open it to no man.
1609 Bible (Douay) I. 2 Kings xvi. Comm. King David was here abused by false information: to which he ought not so safely to have geven credite.
1610 T. Campion New Way Counter-point sig. E3v Doing that safely and resolutely which others attempt tymerously and vncertainely.
b. Without risk or fear of error; with certainty. Cf. safe adj. 10b.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > mental capacity > knowledge > conformity with what is known, truth > freedom from error, correctness > [adverb]
safelya1375
unfailably1555
undeceivably1564
infallibly1597
unerringly1645
inerrably1672
inerringly1755
unmistakingly1838
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 3051 But saufly þis may [i] seye & þe soþe proue.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iii. l. 867 (MED) Bot I dar saufly make an oth, Mi ladi was me nevere loth.
c1405 (c1395) G. Chaucer Franklin's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 53 [For o] thyng sires, saufly dar I seye.
c1440 Sir Degrevant (Thornton) (1949) l. 581 (MED) I dare sauely swere, And he take ȝow on were, All Ynglandes here Sall speke of ȝour dedis.
1573 T. Cartwright Replye to Answere Whitgifte 17 Howe can we doe safelyer then to follow the Apostles customes?
1647 J. Greaves Disc. Romane Foot 103 Therefore wee may the safelier give credit to them.
1688 T. Brown Reasons Mr. Bays 17 I dare engage to speak it [sc. a Verse] as safely before 'em all, as..a Priest may speak false Latine in giving the Absolution.
1710 J. Addison Tatler No. 250. ⁋1 I can safely say, I acted according to the best of my Understanding.
1780 J. Sullivan Let. 14 Dec. in Tracts upon India (1794) 324 Of our present commerce, I can safely say, that I confine myself much within the line of probable advantage.
1825 S. T. Coleridge Aids Refl. 53 Such a one, (safeliest spoken of by the neuter Pronoun).
1875 T. W. Higginson Young Folks' Hist. U.S. xxxii. 328 We can safely assume something more than this.
1947 D. H. Robinson Leguminous Forage Plants (ed. 2) ii. 13 Owing to the almost complete self-sterility of the plants it can be fairly safely assumed that any resultant seed is a cross.
2009 Church Times 10 July 32/2 I think I can safely say that I will not be singing the Exultet next Easter, but I might dare to join in the occasional hymn.
3. In safe confinement; securely imprisoned. Also: in protective custody. Cf. safe adj. 11.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > restraint or restraining > restraint depriving of liberty > [adverb] > in safe custody
safelya1393
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) v. l. 2965 (MED) Achilles, whom to kepe and warde Whil he was yong, as into warde, Sche thoghte him salfly to betake.
1429–30 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Sept. 1429 §30. m. 9 That the keper and wardeyn of the same prisone..savely kepe every persone to his warde so commytted.
c1450 (c1430) Brut (Galba) (1908) 429 (MED) All his prisoneris weren..brought into the Toure of London, to kepe hem there-ynne saufly.
a1500 Rule Minoresses in W. W. Seton Two 15th Cent. Franciscan Rules (1914) 82 Ȝif hit happe..þat þe same Abbey falle to be destruyid..þe sustris þer may leueli remew þennis in to anoþer place sure, where þat þey may dwelle honestli & saueli enclosid.
1505 F. Marsin et al. Rep. Ferdinand of Arragon in J. Gairdner Historia Regis Henrici Septimi (1858) 268 That he shuld resayve and savely kepe the said rebell.
1571 T. Fortescue tr. P. Mexia Foreste iv. xi. f. 187v Anabe..safely kepte hym, vntill hee hadde receaued the whole summe of mony promised hym.
1611 Bible (King James) Acts xvi. 23 Charging the Iaylour to keepe them safely . View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) iv. i. 96 Ile keepe him darke and safely lockt. View more context for this quotation
1682 W. Gough Londinum Triumphans 7 Mention of a Tower therein we find, on Occasion of the same foremention'd Elidurus's being sent thither by his unkind younger Brothers, to be safely kept as a Prisoner therein.
1797 J. Wentworth Compl. Syst. Pleading I. 21 If they should refuse to find such security, then to cause them to be safely kept in the prison of the said late king George the First.
1837 Army & Navy Chron. (Washington) 9 Nov. 299/2 Assin Yohola,..with nearly a dozen war chiefs and seventy warriors, are our prisoners, and..I have them now safely under lock and key in the Fort.
1882 tr. A. Vanloo & E. Leterrier Le Jour et la Nuit iii. ix. 65/2 Halloo! constables!.. You will be pleased to lodge these two persons safely under lock and key.
1921 Cosmopolitan June 123/2 The erstwhile sentry was safely locked away, and so they boldly walked through to the next street.
1981 P. Barker in M. E. Bonine & N. R. Keddie Mod. Iran ii. vii. 143 With the Qashqa'i leadership safely imprisoned in Tehran, Reza Shah proceeded to inflict on this tribe the same oppressive military administration that he had imposed on other tribes.
2007 C. L. Chute in B. Krisberg et al. Continuing Struggle for Justice i. 8/1 They should be kept busy, taught trades, made to live as normal and healthy lives as possible, though safely confined.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > aspects of faith > spirituality > salvation, redemption > [adverb]
safelya1400
savinglya1602
salvificallya1682
a1400 (c1303) R. Mannyng Handlyng Synne (Harl.) l. 1434 (MED) Þo men þat loue to do ryghtly, Þey shal passe þere sauely To þat blesful cuntre Þere ioye withoute ende shal be.
c1400 (c1378) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Laud 581) (1869) B. xi. l. 116 (MED) Cryste..badde hem souke for synne saufly at his breste.
c1425 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Harl.:Wright) l. 4920 + 2 Ȝe mowe sauflyche þet holy þyng as he dude auonge.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) xciv. §2. 341 In shrift of his louynge and of oure synnes, ga we swa bifor his face, that we may sauely abyde his dome.
1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. lxvii. 180 Are we not hereby..admonished which wee may safeliest cleaue vnto?
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, September 2011; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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adv.a1325