meekly

[ meek-lee ]

adverb

1. in a humbly patient or quiet manner:

   When addressing a lawyer during oral arguments, the judge often starts meekly with, "Counsel, may I interrupt?"

2. in an overly submissive or compliant manner:

   Not knowing what we were getting into, we meekly agreed.

Other Words From

• o·ver·meek·ly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of meekly¹

meek ( def ) + -ly

Example Sentences

Tom has been buried so deep under his wife’s thumb for three seasons that the idea that he would do anything but meekly accept their machinations seemed ludicrous to me.

From Time

In terms of inclusion, it very meekly nudged the status quo by hiring one autistic person for the supporting cast and one for the social media team, but that was the extent of autistic inclusion in the show’s autistic story.

From Time

The vast majority of elected Republicans have demonstrated their cravenness by falling meekly into line.

From Washington Post

Instead, black models are required to remain meekly, silently off stage, waiting for a turn that may never come.

From The Daily Beast

Bob Cratchit, the clerk who is the father of Tiny Tim and who meekly serves Scrooge, is paid fifteen shillings a week.

From The Daily Beast

Devastated and utterly embarrassed, I meekly raised my hand.

From The Daily Beast

Nothing edifies Davis in the film apart from his music, but even that is conveyed meekly.

From The Daily Beast

Surely the party can tolerate a few midlevel leaders, especially younger ones, meekly supporting the policy.

From The Daily Beast

A pimply-faced office boy elbowed him out of it and the man turned away meekly.

From Project Gutenberg

Tom meekly did as he was bid, but in his heart there raged the passions of a demon, and he swore Mark Grafton should die.

From Project Gutenberg

It made me smile to remember how mature Patsy had been when I meekly ran her errands and gladly wore her yoke in the old days.

From Project Gutenberg

I call the Most High to witness—she submitted to all my demands meekly, as though she were no eaglet, but a tethered lamb!

From Project Gutenberg

For the rest he studied early and late, and experienced the doubtful glory, and accepted meekly the reproach, of being a grind.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• delicately
• indifferently
• lightly
• moderately
• quietly