Dictionary

mostly en · ADV

Pronunciation

• /ˈmoʊsli/ (General-American)
• (US) audio
• /ˈməʊstli/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /ˈmoʊstli/ (General-American)

Etymology

Etymology tree English most Middle English -ly English -ly English mostly From most + -ly. The sense “probably” is a calque from Indian languages such as Tamil அனேகமாக (aṉēkamāka).

Meanings

1. (not-comparable) Mainly or chiefly; for the most part; usually, generally, on the whole.
   • Mostly, the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism. 2013 June 29, “A punch in the gut”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8842, pages 72–3:
   • They're mostly good people, although they have made a few mistakes.
2. (not-comparable, obsolete) To the greatest extent; most.
   • She was to be their chosen visitor, she was to be for weeks under the same roof with the person whose society she mostly prized [...]! 1803 (date written), [Jane Austen], Northanger Abbey; published in Northanger Abbey: And Persuasion. […], volume (please specify |volume=I or II), London: John Murray, […], 20 December 1817 (indicated as 1818), →OCLC:
3. (India, not-comparable, proscribed) Synonym of probably, likely.

Forms

Antonyms

slightly · almost

Deriveds

mostly plus

Hypernyms

partially

Hyponyms

usually

Relateds

extent · intrinsically · degree · very · fundamentally · normally

Synonyms

primarily · by and large · for the most part · pretty well · all things considered · likely · as a rule · altogether · more often than not · basically · in the large · mostly · principally · all in all · largely · on the whole · overall · generally · broadly · probably · mainly · in the main · chiefly · predominantly · feckly

Translations (86)

sh uglavnom (for the most part) · ga d'fhormhór (for the most part) · fy almeast (for the most part) · ba башлыса (for the most part) · cmn 大多 (for the most part) · sh превасходно (for the most part) · hu jórészt (for the most part) · cs převážně (for the most part) · es en su mayoría (for the most part) · ro mai cu seamă (for the most part) · fr majoritairement (for the most part) · pl przeważnie (for the most part) · fr surtout (for the most part) · ja たいてい (for the most part) · cmn 大都 (for the most part) · vo mödadilo (for the most part) · bg главно (for the most part) · pt principalmente (for the most part) · eo plejparte (for the most part) · ca sobretot (for the most part) · sl predvsém (for the most part) · bg обикновено (for the most part) · cy yn bennaf (for the most part) · de meistens (for the most part) · fi lähinnä (for the most part) · hu túlnyomórészt (for the most part) · ko 대체로 (for the most part) · fi enimmäkseen (for the most part) · hi ज़्यादातर (for the most part) · cs většinou (for the most part) · ro în special (for the most part) · fo mest (for the most part) · pl głównie (for the most part) · uk головним чином (for the most part) · ru в основно́м (for the most part) · sk predovšetkým (for the most part) · de weitgehend (for the most part) · bg в повечето случаи (for the most part) · cmn 大抵 (for the most part) · sh prevashodno (for the most part) · it soprattutto (for the most part) · ur زیاداتر (for the most part) · uk звичайно (for the most part) · hi अधिकतर (for the most part) · ca per damunt de tot (for the most part) · nl meestal (for the most part) · ja 大体は (for the most part) · eo plimulte (for the most part) · hu jobbára (for the most part) · it per lo più (for the most part) · pt sobretudo (for the most part) · cy at ei gilydd (for the most part) · sco maistlins (for the most part) · pt normalmente (for the most part) · nl voornamelijk (for the most part) · ja 大方は (for the most part) · hy հիմնականում (for the most part) · ru ча́ще всего́ (for the most part) · cs vesměs (for the most part) · ta பெரும்பாலும் (for the most part) · de überwiegend (for the most part) · sh углавном (for the most part) · br peurliesañ (for the most part) · br peurvuiañ (for the most part) · sco maistly (for the most part) · bg в по-голямата си част (for the most part) · uk переважно (for the most part) · ga go formhór (for the most part) · be найболей (for the most part) · de größtenteils (for the most part) · izh enemmäst (for the most part) · sl v glávnem (for the most part) · sv mestadels (for the most part) · hu zömmel (for the most part) · de zumeist (for the most part) · eu gehienbat (for the most part) · nl overwegend (for the most part) · pl w głównej mierze (for the most part) · es más que nada (for the most part) · la plērumque (for the most part) · hu nagyrészt (for the most part) · ru по бо́льшей ча́сти (for the most part) · ko 대개 (for the most part) · ro mai ales (for the most part) · uk здебільшого (for the most part) · ru гла́вным о́бразом (for the most part)