Lovingly

How to spell lovingly

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce lovingly

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does lovingly mean?

1. adverbIn a way that shows tender affection or devoted care.

Lovingly in a sentence

• She lovingly arranged the photographs in the family album.

• The old cottage had been lovingly restored over many years.

Where does lovingly come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

This word builds on the noun and verb 'love', which descends from the Old English 'lufu', meaning warm affection or fondness, a word rooted in the same ancient base that gave Latin its 'libet' (it pleases) and 'libido' (desire). The adjective 'loving', meaning full of affection, was formed by adding the present participle ending '-ing' to the verb, and from there the adverb 'lovingly' was created with the familiar '-ly' suffix that turns a quality into a manner of doing something. Because 'love' simply drops its final silent 'e' before '-ing', writers keep the single 'v' and the 'ing', giving the smooth chain 'lov-ing-ly'. The word has been part of English for centuries, describing actions performed with tenderness or devoted care. Its spelling rarely shifts because each piece, 'love', '-ing' and '-ly', is itself a familiar everyday element.

How the word is built

• love (Old English lufu: love)
• -ing (present participle suffix)
• -ly (adverb suffix)