Finally

How to spell finally

7 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce finally

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does finally mean?

1. adverbAfter a long time, delay, or sequence of events; at last.
2. adverbUsed to introduce the last point or item in a list or argument.

Finally in a sentence

• After three weeks of repairs, the car finally started this morning.

• Finally, remember to lock the office before you leave.

• They finally paid off the mortgage after twenty years.

• The report covers costs, staffing, and finally, the timeline.

Where does finally come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin finis, meaning 'end', 'boundary', or 'limit', the same root that gives us 'finish', 'final', and even 'finance'. The Latin adjective finalis, 'relating to an end', passed through Old French as 'final' before settling into English in the late 1300s. The adverb 'finally' was then formed in English by adding the familiar '-ly' ending to 'final', producing the sense 'at the end' or 'at last'. The spelling trap lives in that join: the base word already ends in a doubled 'l' because 'final' plus '-ly' stacks an 'l' onto an 'l', so the correct form keeps both, giving 'finally' rather than the often-written 'finaly'. Remembering that it is simply 'final' plus '-ly' makes the double 'l' obvious.

How the word is built

• fin- (from finis: end, boundary)
• -al (adjective suffix)
• -ly (adverb suffix)