briefly

adverb

brief·​ly ˈbrē-flē How to pronounce briefly (audio)
Synonyms of brieflynext
1
a
: in a brief way
briefly mentioned
b
: in brief
the food, briefly, was awful
2
: for a short time
briefly married

Examples of briefly in a Sentence

Several important issues are only briefly mentioned. Please briefly describe your experience. We briefly considered canceling the trip.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Knicks executive Leon Rose did just that, pairing former Villanova stars Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges and Josh Hart with the Knicks (and, briefly, Donte DiVincenzo, a fourth college teammate). Andrew Greif, NBC news, 4 June 2026 Meanwhile in the Persian Gulf region, Kuwait briefly shut its main airport Wednesday after Iranian drones hit a passenger terminal building, killing one person and wounding dozens. Kareem Chehayeb, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026 The post triggered backlash from some in the tech industry and Agarwal, who had briefly mounted a campaign for governor, decided to jump into the Congressional District 17 race. Grace Hase, Mercury News, 3 June 2026 She was briefly considered to be leading the pack of Democrats vying for governor but failed to gain traction, particularly after a pair of videos showing her interactions with a journalist and former staffer went viral. Kaitlyn Schallhorn, Oc Register, 3 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for briefly

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of briefly was in the 13th century

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Cite this Entry

“Briefly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/briefly. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.

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