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Contents
directly definition
Overview
This page has 8 definitions of directly in English. Directly is an adverb and conjunction. Examples of how to use directly in a sentence are shown. Also define these 0 related words and terms: .
English
Etymology
Pronunciation
Adverb
directly (comparative more directly, superlative most directly)
- In a direct manner; in a straight line or course.
- He drove directly to the office, and didn't stop off at the petrol station.
- 1855, William Wells Brown, Sketches of Places and People Abroad (page 255)
- On arriving at the doors, and entering a long, capacious passage, our eyes became quite dazzled by the gleams of colored light which shone upon them, both directly and reflectedly.
- In a straightforward way; without anything intervening; not by secondary, but by direct means.
- I'm sick of asking you to fire him, I'll just do it directly.
- Plainly, without circumlocution or ambiguity; absolutely; in express terms.
- I'm going to tell Natalie directly that I love her.
- To put it more directly: he's not 'made redundant' but sacked.
- 2012 April 19, Josh Halliday, “Free speech haven or lawless cesspool – can the internet be civilised?”, in the Guardian:
- "Mujtahidd" has attracted almost 300,000 followers since the end of last year, when he began posting scandalous claims about the Saudi elite. In one tweet, Mujtahidd directly challenged Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Fahd about his political history: "Did you resign or were you forced to resign from your post as head of the diwan [office] of the council of ministers?"
- Exactly; just.
- It's directly across the street.
- 2013 September-October, Henry Petroski, “The Evolution of Eyeglasses”, in American Scientist:
- The ability of a segment of a glass sphere to magnify whatever is placed before it was known around the year 1000, when the spherical segment was called a reading stone, […] . Scribes, illuminators, and scholars held such stones directly over manuscript pages as an aid in seeing what was being written, drawn, or read.
- Straightforwardly; honestly.
- He told me directly that he'd cheated on me, and how sorry he was for it.
- (dated) Immediately.
- (Midlands, Cornwall) Soon; next; when it becomes convenient.
- We'll go to the store directly, but first I need to finish sweeping.
Synonyms
- (in a straight line or course): straightwise, undeviatingly
- (without circumlocution or ambiguity): bluntly, clearly, downrightly, unambiguously; see also Thesaurus:explicitly
- (exactly, just): accurately, precisely, slap bang; see also Thesaurus:exactly
- (straightforwardly, honestly): frankly, truthfully
- (immediately): forthwith, now, tout de suite; see also Thesaurus:immediately
- (soon, next): betimes, presently, shortly; see also Thesaurus:soon
Antonyms
Translations
in a direct manner
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in a straightforward way
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plainly, without circumlocution or ambiguity
exactly; just
immediately — see immediately
straightforwardly; honestly
soon; next; when it becomes convenient
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Dictionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
Conjunction
directly
- As soon as; immediately (elliptical for directly that/as/when)
- 1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance, Faber & Faber 2004 (Avignon Quintet), p. 725:
- Tenderly, reluctantly, he took his leave of her, promising that he would contact her directly he got back, perhaps in ten days or so.
- 2009, Hilary Mantel, Wolf Hall, Fourth Estate 2010, p. 463:
- He is to go to Calais, directly this is over, to replace Lord Berners as governor [...].
- 1982, Lawrence Durrell, Constance, Faber & Faber 2004 (Avignon Quintet), p. 725: