bluntly

[ bluhnt-lee ]

adverb

1. starkly and directly, with no attempt to be tactful or diplomatic:

   I always had a tendency to act in ways that are politically unwise—to bluntly say what I consider the truth.

   To put it bluntly, that is a very poor piece of policy-making.

2. in a way that involves no subtlety or discernment:

   It was one of those things that's so bluntly obvious, none of them really had to say anything about it.

   The three-strikes law has been applied too broadly, too bluntly, with some people serving life sentences for relatively minor crimes.

3. without any sharp points or edges:

   It has downy leaves and stems and small white flowers blooming in June, followed by bluntly triangular seedpods.

Word History and Origins

Origin of bluntly¹

blunt ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Patients who’ve tested positive come to me and bluntly state, “I have Alzheimer’s.”

From Los Angeles Times

To put it bluntly: If Harris was considered too Black to be our first Black female president, then, welp!

From Slate

And an understanding that, bluntly, Europe cares more about Ukraine than the United States does.

From BBC

It features a probing interview with Stewart, who is by turns cagey and bluntly honest.

From Los Angeles Times

Often it was the most stable patients in smaller district hospitals who would be selected for transfer as – bluntly – they were the most likely to survive in a moving vehicle for several hours.

From BBC

Related Words

• crudely
• harshly