Obviously

How to spell obviously

9 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce obviously

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does obviously mean?

1. adverbIn a way that is clear, plain, and easy to see or understand.

Obviously in a sentence

• The figures were obviously wrong, so the accountant rechecked the totals.

• She was obviously exhausted after the long shift at the hospital.

Where does obviously come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin obvius, meaning 'in the way' or 'lying in the path', which was built from ob 'against, toward' and via 'road, way'. Something that was obvius literally met you on the road, standing right in front of you where you could not miss it, and from that physical image grew the sense of something plainly evident to the mind. English took the adjective 'obvious' in the late 1500s and added the native adverb ending -ly to form 'obviously'. The same via 'road' root still travels through everyday words like 'viaduct' and 'deviate', which helps explain why the middle of the word keeps that vi spelling. The spelling trap is the unstressed middle: writers hear 'OB-vee-us-lee' and sometimes drop or muddle the vowels of -ously.

How the word is built

• ob- (in the way of)
• via (road/way)
• -ous (full of)
• -ly (adverb suffix)