Reliably

How to spell reliably

8 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce reliably

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does reliably mean?

1. adverbIn a way that can be depended on to perform consistently or to be accurate.

Reliably in a sentence

• The old diesel engine starts reliably even in freezing weather.

• The courier service delivers reliably within two working days.

Where does reliably come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This adverb traces back to the verb 'rely', which English took from the Old French 'relier', meaning 'to bind together' or 'to fasten'. That French verb came in turn from the Latin 'religare', built from 're-' ('back' or 'again') and 'ligare', meaning 'to bind' or 'to tie'. The earliest English sense was literally to gather or fasten things together, but by the 1500s it had shifted to the figurative idea of leaning on someone or something for support, in other words depending on it. From 'rely' came the adjective 'reliable' (something you can depend on) and then the adverb 'reliably'. The very same 'ligare' root sits inside 'ligament', 'ligature' and even 'league', and remembering that you 'rely' (with a y) explains the spelling trap: the y softens to an i before the -able ending, giving reli-ably rather than rely-ably.

How the word is built

• rely (to depend, from Latin religare 'to bind')
• -able (capable of)
• -ly (adverb); note the y of 'rely' turns to i before -able