foolishly

English

Etymology

foolish +‎ -ly

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈfuːlɪʃli/

Adverb

foolishly (comparative more foolishly, superlative most foolishly)

1. In a foolish manner.

   He dressed foolishly to entertain the children.

   • 1811, [Jane Austen], chapter XVII, in Sense and Sensibility […], volume I, London: […] C[harles] Roworth, […], and published by T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 220:

     I never wish to offend, but I am so foolishly shy, that I often seem negligent, when I am only kept back by my natural aukwardness.

   • 1820, [Walter Scott], chapter XV, in The Abbot. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne & Co.] for Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown, […]; and for Archibald Constable and Company, and John Ballantyne, […], →OCLC, pages 329–330:

     “Nothing to speak of,” said Adam Woodcock, answering for the boy—“a foolish quarrel with me, which was more foolishly told over again to my honoured lady, cost the poor boy his place. […]”

2. Without good judgment.

   Foolishly, he had decided that, because a home was the best investment, two homes were even better.