as in still
without motion
she stood quietly behind the curtains, hoping to scare her sister when she came into the room
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Recent Examples of quietly
In these quietly stunning essays, a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, the daughter of an Army veteran and a schoolteacher, looks back on her upbringing in Buckhannon, West Virginia.
—
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Wealth, meanwhile, has quietly redefined itself upward.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 May 2026
The lilac’s blooms are dichotomous, both quietly delicate and also boisterous with a showstopping flair.
—Emily Leahy, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
Beginning in 2003, Bezos quietly bought up land in western Texas to serve as Blue Origin’s testing and operations center, ultimately purchasing some 400,000 acres—an area more than half the size of Rhode Island.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 May 2026
For decades, California had some of the strongest legal protections for law enforcement officers in the country, at times allowing those who engaged in serious misconduct to quietly quit and find jobs in other departments.
—Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
And without really noticing it, the urgency that once existed at the beginning of your search quietly fades away.
—Allen Buchanan, Oc Register, 2 May 2026
However, the viewers and donors didn't go quietly.
—Lexi Lane, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026
Colorado is no stranger to dry weather, but drought is something that can quietly build over time and impact everything from farms to wildfire risk.
—Callie Zanandrie, CBS News, 2 May 2026
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Wealth, meanwhile, has quietly redefined itself upward.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 May 2026
The lilac’s blooms are dichotomous, both quietly delicate and also boisterous with a showstopping flair.
—Emily Leahy, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
Beginning in 2003, Bezos quietly bought up land in western Texas to serve as Blue Origin’s testing and operations center, ultimately purchasing some 400,000 acres—an area more than half the size of Rhode Island.
—Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 May 2026
For decades, California had some of the strongest legal protections for law enforcement officers in the country, at times allowing those who engaged in serious misconduct to quietly quit and find jobs in other departments.
—Los Angeles Times, 2 May 2026
And without really noticing it, the urgency that once existed at the beginning of your search quietly fades away.
—Allen Buchanan, Oc Register, 2 May 2026
However, the viewers and donors didn't go quietly.
—Lexi Lane, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026
Colorado is no stranger to dry weather, but drought is something that can quietly build over time and impact everything from farms to wildfire risk.
—Callie Zanandrie, CBS News, 2 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quietly
Adverb
-
When Wagner was healthy in the first four games, Cunningham was still getting his points, but getting them inefficiently, struggling to find rhythm against Wagner’s length and discipline.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
4 May 2026
-
Dylan, who shares a room with a leopard gecko, is still steeped in the unambiguous stuff of kid-world.—
Anna Wiener,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
Adverb
-
Some workers just quiet-quit, doing the minimum to hold on to their jobs.—
Christopher Dinsmore,
Baltimore Sun,
8 Dec. 2022
-
On another end were the quiet-seeking bedrooms and bathrooms, one with a step-down Roman shower.—
oregonlive,
oregonlive,
7 Nov. 2022
Cite this Entry
“Quietly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quietly. Accessed 10 May. 2026.
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