Socially

How to spell socially

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce socially

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does socially mean?

1. adverbIn a way that relates to society, to interaction with other people, or to friendly company rather than business.

Socially in a sentence

• The two firms compete professionally but get along well socially.

• Volunteering left her better connected socially than she had been in years.

Where does socially come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin socius, which meant 'companion', 'partner', or 'ally', the same root that gives us 'society', 'associate', and 'sociable'. From socius came the adjective socialis, meaning 'of companionship' or 'belonging to fellowship', describing things shared among allies and friends. English took up 'social' through French and directly from Latin in the 1500s, at first in the narrow sense of relating to alliances and human company, later broadening to cover society as a whole. The adverb 'socially' was then formed in the usual English way by adding -ly to the adjective. The spelling trap lives in the unstressed middle: the 'ci' is pronounced as a soft 'sh' sound, so the familiar -cially ending can easily slip to a wrongly doubled or simplified form unless you remember the soci- root underneath.

How the word is built

• soci- (from Latin socius: companion, ally)
• -al (adjective: relating to)
• -ly (adverb: in the manner of)