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chiefly

adv
/ˈtʃiːf.li/UK

Etymology

From chief + -ly (adjectival suffix). Piecewise doublet of chefly and headly.

  1. inherited from chefly

Definitions

  1. Especially or primarily

    Especially or primarily; above all.

    • Their relationship is chiefly professional.
    • This is a term chiefly used by online gamers.
    • But questions presisted^([sic]), chiefly because of the acknowledged and continuing Federal investigation of Mr. Mandel's wealthy friends, W. Dale Hess and Harry W. Rogers 3d, who have profited from business with the state.

  2. Mainly or principally

    Mainly or principally; almost entirely.

  3. Of or relating to a chief.

    • The maintenance of a perpetual fire came to be associated with chiefly or royal dignity.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

A definitional loop anchored at chiefly. Each word in the ring is defined by the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself. Scroll to it and watch.

01chiefly02principally03matter04concern05problem06schoolwork07school08prior

A definitional loop anchored at chiefly. Each word in the ring appears in the definition of the next; follow the chain far enough and it folds back on itself.

8 hops · closes at chiefly

curated · pre-corpus. live cycle detection across the full graph is the next major milestone.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA