sagely

adverb

sage·​ly ˈsāj-lē 

: in a sage or wise manner

The soldiers nodded sagely to each other. Cluny was right. There was no fondness in the ranks for the dead, power-hungry bully.

—Brian Jacques

Spike the bulldog and Droopy have a Wile E. Coyote/Road Runner thing going on as Spike cheats, schemes, and sabotages in his futile efforts to defeat Droopy, but as Droopy sagely observes, "Cheaters never win."

—Donald Liebenson

Examples of sagely in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

If a historically unique destructive force inhabits the Oval Office, the Constitution — which, as Justice Robert Jackson sagely observed, is not a suicide pact — allows immediate expulsion. —Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 30 Dec. 2023

Costello nodded along sagely to the music and exchanged bon mots with wife Krall; Fallon headbanged and sang along; Olsen took a smoke break. —Joe Lynch, Billboard, 20 Oct. 2023

For the most part, the researchers found, emissions stem from rush hour vehicle congestion, which remote workers sagely sidestep. —Byjane Thier, Fortune, 21 Sep. 2023

On the other side of a French fry platter, Ms. Liddy and Ms. Flowers nodded sagely. —Emma Goldberg, New York Times, 14 May 2023

Roger, sagely, nodded assent. —David Remnick, The New Yorker, 20 May 2022

Freddie was nodding slowly and sagely. —Marc Myers, WSJ, 30 Sep. 2020

Basically: Cordes sagely points out that type-three fun can, once enough time passes, shift to type-two fun. —Brendan Leonard, Outside Online, 13 Mar. 2022

Nor is the blue slip’s history crowned in glory, as Grassley sagely noted in 2017. —Matt Ford, The New Republic, 31 Jan. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from sage sage entry 2 + -ly -ly entry 2

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above