Chiefly

How to spell chiefly

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce chiefly

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does chiefly mean?

1. adverbMainly or principally; for the most part.

Chiefly in a sentence

• The budget shortfall was chiefly caused by rising fuel costs.

• The museum is known chiefly for its collection of ancient coins.

Where does chiefly come from?

Language of origin: French

This word builds on the noun and adjective 'chief', which English took from Old French 'chief' or 'chef', meaning 'head' or 'leader'. The French form descended from the Latin 'caput', which literally meant 'head', the part of the body, and by extension the person at the head of a group. By adding the native English adverb-forming suffix '-ly', writers in the late Middle Ages created 'chiefly' to mean 'in the main' or 'principally'. The same Latin 'caput' lies behind a surprising family of words, including 'captain', 'capital', and even the cookery term 'chef', who is literally the head of a kitchen. The trickiest part of the spelling is the 'ie' order in 'chief', which follows the familiar 'i before e' pattern, and the simple doubling of nothing when '-ly' is added straight onto 'chief'.

How the word is built

• chief (from caput: head, leader)
• -ly (adverb suffix)