Overtly

How to spell overtly

7 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce overtly

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does overtly mean?

1. adverbIn an open and undisguised way, done plainly for everyone to see.

Overtly in a sentence

• The manager was overtly critical of the new policy during the meeting.

• The advertisement was overtly aimed at younger customers.

Where does overtly come from?

Language of origin: French

This word descends from the adjective 'overt', which English borrowed from Old French in the 1300s. The Old French 'overt' (in modern French 'ouvert') meant simply 'open' and was the past participle of 'ovrir', 'to open'. That verb in turn came from the Latin 'aperire', meaning 'to open' or 'to uncover', the same root that gives us 'aperture'. In English 'overt' settled into the sense of something done openly and without concealment, the opposite of 'covert' (hidden), which comes from the related Latin idea of covering. Adding the ordinary English adverb ending '-ly' produced 'overtly', describing an action carried out plainly and in full view; the spelling stays simple because the adjective ends in a consonant, so the suffix attaches with no change.

How the word is built

• overt (open, not hidden)
• -ly (adverb suffix)